Need you
by MackayFire
Summary: Tyler and Caroline multi-chapter story. Tyler and Caroline are best friends on the cusp of more but the course of true love never did run smooth. Set after 2x22
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**: So this is my first multi-chapter forwood story and I'm sort of playing it by ear. Please review and let me know what you think, I'm not that confident with the content of this chapter (I'm not used to writing sex scenes!) so any feedback is much appreciated :)

Rating: M (for sexual content)

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><p>"Let's go camping!"<p>

Tyler raised a sceptical eyebrow at Caroline across the lunch table. He was such a typical boy, why use his words when a simple expression would explain. Luckily, since he had become best friends with a verbose female such as herself she knew she could save him from a lifetime of caveman grunts and one syllable sentences. Truly, his future wife would be suggesting her for a noble peace price one day.

"Why not?"

She tried not to sound like a petulant child but she found herself pouting in frustration. She had thought it was such a great getaway idea this morning! He pointedly looked out of the wide glass cafeteria windows at the grey skies and pouring rain as she shoved a heaped forkful of meatballs into his mouth.

"Okay so it's winter but so what? It can't rain every day and we're supernatural, we can take a bit of cold and wet! Besides you should be extra pumped to get out into the wilderness!"

He screwed up his face in distaste and she knew it was less about the weather and more about her implying about his 'condition' in such a flippant way. Tyler was about as rustic and outdoorsy as any of the pampered elite and the less he associated with his 'other' side the better off she knew he felt. Still, she was determined to get away.

"Please?"

She gave him her hopeful doe-eyed expression and slid her cookie over to his tray as her last bargaining chip. He looked pissed off but she knew it was with himself because he was totally going to cave.

"Why?"

He began breaking up the cookie with his hand and passed half back to her and chewed on his entire half in one go. Caroline knew he ate like a pig at school because he couldn't get away with it at home but the fact she got half her sugar fix back endeared his lunchtime barbarism to her.

"Because I'm sick of this place! I'm sick of avoiding Matt like some unmentionable disease, of tiptoeing awkwardly around my mom. I'm sick of walking around town and being reminded of being shot or someone dying. I want to make happy memories somewhere else that won't be tainted by all the shit that always inevitably hits the fan around here. I want to do it before it too late."

She felt a lump in her throat as she remembered Stefan's absence or Elena's depression. She only had to remind herself that Klaus would likely be back for bloody retribution at some point and felt a vague panic at the back of her mind every day that it was just one step further into some ominous descent. Nothing felt sacred anymore, even her bedroom was where Matt had looked at her with such horror and broke her heart (for the second time? Third?).

Tyler stared at her with a gentle scrutiny.

"Okay."

"Really?"

She clapped her hands in excitement as Tyler rolled his eyes but she knew he was struggling not to smile, he was usually powerless against her enthusiasm.

"Have you even actually camped before Forbes?"

"You don't need to sound so suspicious. I'm not taking you out into the woods to murder you or anything."

He laughed and a pleasant satisfaction warmed her at her small achievement.

"I'll take that as a no."

"Yes it's a no. But it's not rocket science! I've seen it in the movies and mom has all this survival crap in the hallway closet. We just need a tent and activities and alcohol."

The alcohol comment had him grinning, they both tended to bond over liquor of some sort. It was kinda their thing.

"What about food genius?"

"I'll hunt bunnies and you can bring whatever you want. Don't make fun of me jerk, I'm planning as I go. It's supposed to be an adventure so quit with the party pooping."

Tyler put up his hands in amused surrender and pinned her with an indecipherable look. He was giving her a lot of those lately. The benefit of his lack of verbal communication was that she got to know most of his expressions or mannerisms to a tee, he was typically an open book now she had made the effort to study him but sometimes there was a shielded look that confounded her.

"Sorry, okay lets go."

"When?"

"Now."

"_Tyler_."

"I'm serious! You want me to come then we go now. Skip school, get our stuff and take my car."

It was already Friday but she never skipped class and she had imagined camping in a few weeks when they had discussed location and sleeping arrangements.

"And go where? It's raining!"

"Anywhere! Caroline it's supposed to be an adventure so are you going to be a chicken shit or are you going to leave with me now?"

She scowled at being called a chicken shit and he gave her a marginally apologetic half smile but his serious gaze trapped her like he was trying to figure something out. In the grand scheme of things, bailing on a few classes was worth it. Technically she would live forever but more and more she was beginning to feel like she was living on borrowed time. She wasn't going to waste any.

"Okay fine."

His blinding smile practically knocked her sideways and she felt herself grinning brightly in return. They picked up their bags and exited the cafeteria onto the field where they were immediately pummelled with huge droplets of rain. She hadn't run ten steps before her clothes were sodden. Tyler began to laugh at her feeble attempt of putting her satchel over her head to protect her hair which now stuck to the sides of her face.

"You're an asshole!" She shouted through the wind.

"Is that what I am? You are-"

He sobered for a moment and stared down at his shoes that were trudging through the mud. She had a feeling the sentence was going to end with something scathing about her vanity so she was glad he had the tact to keep his mouth shut. They walked briskly towards the car park, there was no point running when they were already soaked. After a few minutes of silence he put his arm around her shoulder and drew her to his side.

"You're shivering."

"That's because I'm cold _genius_."

Despite being equally drenched his naturally increased body heat did actually help but she was surprised to hear his heartbeat pick up when she leaned in closer against him. Poor guy hadn't been laid in so long any physical contact probably set him on edge. When they reached his car they quickly bundled in and Tyler immediately put the heat on full blast.

"Better?"

She nodded even though her teeth were still chattering.

"Sorry I'm leaking into your seat."

He shrugged in the careless way rich people could about ruining expensive upholstery but she realised if they were going to be travelling in the vehicle for hours on end that she'd dry out before the seat would. She quickly wiggled out of her coat and flung it behind her and took off her jumper until she was only in her bra. She automatically felt warmer having the clinging garments off of her.

"Caroline!"

Typical guy, he was practically wedged as far against the opposite car door and away from her as possible and his eyes were darting anxiously anywhere but at her.

"You know I'd really appreciate it if you could look a little less horrified at my semi-nakedness."

She undid the buttons of her jeans and arched up so she could slide them down her thighs and then kicked them the rest of the way off her legs.

"There! Now I won't flood the car."

She turned the radio on low and put her feet on the dashboard.

"Are you going turn to switch out of park anytime soon?"

Tyler seemed physically stunned as he hadn't moved and was still determinedly scrutinizing the ceiling light.

"Tyler?"

"You can't just get naked in my car without warning! You ambushed me with flesh."

His gaze unconsciously dropped straight to her chest before he seemed to regain his senses and overcompensated by scowling at her.

"Tyler it's not a big deal. We're going to be sharing a tent, we're friends and I've seen you naked countless times."

Tyler's scowl deepened at the mention of his transformation and monthly vulnerability.

"It's not the same thing. Besides I'm a guy, it's inbuilt that we perv when a beautiful girl is in her underwear, I can't help it!"

"Don't worry I totally perved when you were naked. Like I said, no big deal."

Tyler's eyes practically popped out of their sockets at this piece of information but she couldn't understand why he was so weird about it. They were human (kind of) and having a healthy curiosity was natural.

"I-"

She suddenly became aware that the windows had steamed up so she wrote cheekily across the windshield that Tyler was a chicken shit. He narrowed his eyes and she couldn't help but notice how cute he looked with his mussed up hair and wearing a top that had basically sucked in against his body so that every contour of his muscles were outlined. She felt a familiar throbbing between her legs but she ignored it. Tyler was her friend, anything else would just make it too messy. She could almost hear her nether regions complaining bitterly but she knew it was for the best.

"I'm a chicken shit am I?"

Before she knew what she had started, he was ripping his top up over his head and manoeuvring out of his black trousers with a kind of confident grace she couldn't have mustered. He raised his eyebrows challengingly and she obediently rubbed out her window taunt. The silence between them had become fraught with an awkward tension as they both realised they were facing each other clad in next to nothing in a steamed up car.

"Um this is weird."

Tyler didn't smile at her attempt to diffuse the moment. He was too busy caressing every inch of her body with his gentle gaze. She wasn't sure if he knew what he was doing until his eyes finally locked with her own and she finally understood. He looked hungry and the hot desire emanating from his side of the car was doing nothing to dispel the fire in the pit of her stomach. She tried to remind herself they were friends and that there were boundaries but she couldn't look away from him and the insane need that was pulsating between her legs had her dying to grind on him just to relieve some of the pressure. Her breath was coming out in uneven puffs and the heaving of her chest was battering down any resolve Tyler had to keep his hands to himself.

"Tyler" she whispered, halfway between a warning and a plea.

Her low voice seemed to have pulled the trigger and before she could think of something more substantial to add, he was lunging across the car and grabbing her face roughly with both hands. She gasped in surprise but he didn't kiss her straight away, he was so close to her she could smell the rain mixed with his cologne. He simply stared into her eyes, awaiting permission with shuddering exhales. She met her lips with his softly and forgot all her logical reasons for resisting him. They kissed slowly at first but then she was tasting him anywhere she could and he was trailing kisses down her neck while he reached around to undo her bra. It wasn't enough though and the way they were sitting made it awkward so she arched up and over so that she pushed him back and straddled him in his seat. He smiled up at her, almost shyly, as he stroked her dripping, messy hair behind her ears so he could better see her face.

"You are-"

She hushed him with a kiss as he returned the pressure desperately and slid his tongue into her mouth. She found herself wondering how long he had been waiting for this and whether it was just sex in general or especially with her. However when she felt one of his hot wet fingers push aside her underwear and enter her she couldn't even pretend to care. His other hand left her cheek and trailed down to massage one of her breasts which had her moaning his name into the side of his mouth where she could feel a satsified smile. This was not the kind of adventure she had expected to be having but she was just glad the windows remained fogged up since they were technically still on school grounds.

"More."

She sucked in a sharp breath when he entered another finger inside her and thrust harder, she grinded down on to his hand as she felt her insides wind tighter and tighter. Caroline sighed in contentment as she heard him panting lightly near her ear before he leant her back gently so he could take one of her nipples into his mouth. She braced both her arms behind her on the dashboard and closed her eyes and she continued to rock against him. Holy crap did she like having a friend this good. Seriously, she was pretty sure this was the best thing any friend had done for her.

As she felt her climax building she removed his hand from underwear so she could better feel herself move against his erection which elicited a long groan from her companion. That indecipherable look of his was back again that trapped her gaze and she felt a swooping sensation travel through her. She snuck her hand past the waistband of his boxers so that she could take him in her grip and stroked him with a teasing lightness. He was so hot it was unbelievable as he throbbed against her and the anticipation to have him inside her was too much.

She gave him a significant look and he understood. He bucked up against her and slipped down his boxers before pushing her underwear aside again so she could lift up slightly and then sink carefully down on to him. Once he was inside of her suddenly everything became loaded with meaning, they had crossed a threshold and although desire was aching in her every fiber, she felt a surge of affection to just kiss him and try and tell him that this was 'something'. What that 'something' was she had no idea but as she trailed butterfly kisses along his jaw and he stroked his arms up and down her back comfortingly she needed to let him know that it wasn't nothing, more than an impulse.

"I know," he whispered hoarsely.

She smiled in relief and began to thrust furiously against him as he gripped her thighs and met her rhythm with a confident ease.

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><p>Caroline curled up in Tyler's lap with her lips resting against his pulse point for several minutes after she had come down from the best orgasm ever. She found it bizarre that her mouth was so close to his artery but she didn't even have the energy for blood lust and he didn't seem uncomfortable at the promixity either. She wasn't sure if it was because she was supernatural or because Tyler knew her so well but she had never experienced such euphoria in her life. She thought she might have actually lost her mind, it had escaped somewhere as all-encompassing pleasure had taken over every thought and sense. She could only helplessly collapse against Tyler's chest as he tried to stabilize his own ragged breathing with what he'd call his 'shit eating' grin on his face. She was definitely no longer cold.<p>

"Well I think it's safe to say neither of us are, in fact, chicken shits."

She had only just regained to the ability of speech but she wished to had thought of something more romantic to espouse. Tyler's chuckle rumbled through his chest as he kissed the top of her head.

"Nope."

"Still want to go camping?"

"I'll go wherever you go. Especially if I get car sex as a reward."

She frowned in indignation but didn't say anything.

"I can feel you scowling."

"You make me scowl so often you'll give me premature wrinkles."

He laughed and tilted her head up to him so he could kiss her lips and then between her eyebrows.

"Better?"

She kissed him back eagerly in response and nodded.

"Caroline you are-"

She rolled her eyes good-humouredly.

"One day you'll be expected to actually finish that sentence Tyler."

"-indescribable."

She blushed at the expression of gentle wonderment on his face as he breathed out that one word and reached out her hand to draw a heart in the misted window.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Second chapter is up! I'm not sure how frequently I'll be able to update but from now on I'll try to upload once a week. Please review and let me know how I'm going. Their story isn't going to be quick or straightforward so don't hate Caroline in this chapter :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Vampire Diaries or its characters. Nor do I have any rights to Dolly Parton, Gossip Girl, Pride and Prejudice or The Bronze Horseman.

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><p>Caroline remained against Tyler in his car seat for hours. He was ridiculously warm and moving meant exiting back into reality where they'd actually have to talk about what had happened. So she was staying put and Tyler didn't seem that keen to shift her either. He simply rested his chin at the top of her head and danced his fingers down her arm absentmindedly every so often. The radio was a good distraction from the <em>oh my god holy shit what have I done<em> panic cycle that was beginning to give her a headache. Half of her wanted to just fuse against him and spend eternity humming along to Dolly Parton in his SUV but a bigger part of her was itching to bolt out of the car and run half naked all the way home.

It was only when saw figures beginning to enter into the parking lot that she realised school had let out and they were no longer concealed by condensation.

"Tyler we should leave."

"Huh?" He looked dazedly out of the window before sobering and sitting up further as she crawled back into her own seat.

"I think camping is probably a bit ambitious for today."

He nodded slowly but wouldn't look at her, instead focussing on starting the car and backing out of their spot. There was a tense silence as Tyler drove to her house.

"Thanks for the ride."

One side of Tyler's mouth quirked up predictably.

"Shouldn't I be the one thanking _you_?" He grinned at her unashamedly as his eyes did one last sweep of her body. She knew he was anticipating a slap of some kind by the way he leant slightly towards his window but she could have kissed him for lightening the mood. This wasn't going to get weird. Hurrah!

"You're sooo witty Tyler, seriously you should take that act on the road. Far, _far _away from me."

She smiled ruefully to show she was joking and he was suddenly very close to her. His eyes bore into her own and she could feel his breath on her lips but then he was reaching out his hand and opening her door for her.

"See? I'm absolutely a gentleman." He whispered huskily into her ear.

She felt a rising panic that he was going to kiss her so she bent down quickly to pick up her wet clothes, almost headbutting him in the process if he didn't have supernatural reflexes.

"Where's the fire Care?" He only half joked.

There was a suspicious gleam in his eyes that reminded her of the 'bad old days' between them as she was backing ungracefully out of the door.

"I should get inside and shower before mom gets off shift."

They both knew there was another four hours before her mom finished (he tended to know the sheriff's schedule so he could avoid her) but she was grateful he simply nodded and shifted back into his seat.

"I'll see you later."

Caroline nodded so enthusiastically she thought she was going to give herself motion sickness and gave an awkward little wave as she shut the door. She jogged to her porch so she didn't give her elderly neighbours a heart attack and the enormity of what she had done hit her as she heard his car roar down the street.

She had slept with Tyler Lockwood! He was her friend. He was also Matt's closest friend which complicated things even further. Sure, both guys hadn't seen each other in months but their distance was mutually decided and amicable. She could tell Tyler missed him. As amazingly fun as she was, he could only take so many hours of Pride and Prejudice mini-series or Gossip Girl marathons before he probably wanted to get drunk and play Madden. She felt ill just remembering how she had practically mauled him and then half fell asleep in his lap all afternoon. She quickly dialled his number while at the same time rummaging through her dresser for a big T-shirt of Matt's to cover herself with. It was best to sort everything out quickly.

"Miss me already Forbes?"

His drawl was annoying alluring. Seriously he could make a girl climax just by lowering his voice and saying how much he wanted to fuck their brains out. Just imagining it was distracting her from the dignified conversation she was trying to have.

"Oh hey. Um hi."

Did she mention how his laugh was also sexy as hell?

"Sorry my mind was elsewhere."

"So was mine."

"Tyler."

"What?"

"Stop it!"

He sighed.

"Stop what?"

"You _know _what."

"Actually no I don't. I don't have a fucking clue about anything at this point and you called me remember?"

Unfortunately his tone had shifted from playful to irritated and she knew it would make what she had to say so much harder.

"Right I did. I just wanted to say I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. I'm not sure how to explain myself but I just don't want things to be weird. I mean we can't be the first friends to accidently have sex right?"

She giggled shrilly wanting to smack herself upside the head for the excuse of accidental fornication. The idea was ludicrous but she was trying to smooth things over and making light of it all seemed the quickest route back to normality. What had happened was maybe the most amazing experience she'd ever had with someone but it didn't make it right or sensible. She still had feelings for Matt and using Tyler as a sex toy was a drool-worthy but not fair thing to do.

There was an ominous pause.

"Okay."

"Okay? Great. It's just things are already so messy and I just don't want to complicate one of the best parts of my life.

"I get it Caroline. We forget it ever happened right?"

He sounded so closed off she knew she had hurt him but it was better now rather than later. Forgetting was going to be impossible but a repeat was also a terrible idea.

"Today meant something to me, I'm not going to sweep into under the rug, we just can't do it again. I still care for Matt and even if I didn't I'm not ready for another relationship and you probably aren't in the market for one anyway. I mean we are pretty dysfunctional as it is what with our parents practically declaring war on each other. I don't think getting it on constantly is going to make things any easier."

"_Relax _Caroline, I said I get it."

She released a long breath.

"So you don't hate me?"

"You know that's never going to happen."

It was true. She didn't know how it had happened but she instinctively knew he'd always have her back whether he wanted to or not, at this point she was guessing 'not' but it was like they were bound together by something bigger than their own inclinations.

"Want to come over for movies and popcorn once mom goes to bed?"

"I'm gonna pass, I gotta go."

She ignored the sinking disappointment at his determined refusal. It was the first time since they'd become close friends that he'd ever refused to see her. It was probably unfair to expect his undivided attention anyway, they weren't dating and he could actually be busy.

"Okay cya Tyler."

She blamed her vampire hormones on everything that had happened that Friday, especially when she unexpectedly burst into tears when his line went dead. What the hell was wrong with her?

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><p>Caroline was trying to read her favourite novel when her mom came home but she wasn't really focussing on anything in particular. Her body was still tingling a pleasant reminder of her lunchtime activities.<p>

"Caroline you're home?"

Her mom popped her head around her bedroom door in incredulity either that she was in her pyjamas at 7pm or that she was reading a book for fun.

"You don't need to sound so surprised."

To be fair she was rarely in on a friday night but Bonnie and Jeremy were being all secretive and couply, Elena was conspiring with Damon to get Stefan back and none of these activities apparently required her participation. She was initially hurt that Damon had basically told her to keep her nose out of it when she wanted to help in finding Stefan and Elena had said nothing. She may have given them both the silent treatment for a few days but Elena rationalised that they had no leads, no power against Klaus and so the less people that ruined their lives over it all the better. She had relented but made Elena promise that as soon as they had any firm clues they'd let her in on the campaign. She didn't realise however that that meant not letting her into her life at all and so here she was, friendless on a friday.

"Sorry I just was expecting to microwave a meal alone as usual."

Her mother really was a hopeless cook. She only really made food from scratch when Caroline used to be there to eat it also and that was usually just basic pasta dishes. Caroline had loved to make the dinners for them, it made her feel grown up and domesticated and something she could prove to her mother she could succeed at. Since she had become a vampire however she didn't get the same enjoyment from it. Instead of it helping to remind her mother how talented she was, it just pointed at how unnecessary the task for her was now. Still, she was determined to try and have some stability with her mother. Liz was coming to accept she was a vampire but it was still awkward and she guessed a night in was as good a time as any to make some progress.

"I'll make a lasagne if you want. You can get changed and put your feet up and I'll go into Martha Stewart mode."

Her mom smiled tentatively. "It's okay, I have some mac and cheese I can heat up."

"Gross! Lasagne is a much better offer."

"It's fine really, I don't want to interrupt you from your book."

"It's The Bronze Horseman. I've read it a hundred times!"

Epic romance novels might be like crack cocaine to her these days (escapism was excellent for heartache) but if she could improve her own reality instead she knew which she'd prefer. Before her mother could try to dissuade her again she marched into the kitchen and began getting the cheese out of the fridge and putting on her lilac apron.

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><p>"Are you sure you didn't have an affair with an Italian mom? Because seriously, I make an amazing lasagne and we both know I didn't get the culinary gene from your side."<p>

Her mother smiled in answer. Their dinner had actually been great, it helped that her food was delicious and that her mom had survived on soggy sandwiches and crackers all day. It was ironic that these quiet, bonding evenings were a rarity when she was a human but they'd both tried to make an effort (however forced or uncomfortable) since she'd become undead.

"So no Tyler tonight?"

Just like that her mother had a way of tanking any merriment. Her suspicious but hopeful prying really irritated her. She knew her mom was just concerned about her but by implication it meant she expected Tyler to rip her to shreds. This was a boy she'd known his whole life and just like that he'd become an outsider.

"Nope."

"Good."

"Mom, don't."

"Caroline all the lasagne dinners in the world won't change my stance on Tyler Lockwood. You're my daughter and Tyler is a threat. Not just to you but to everyone on a full moon. That makes it my business."

Caroline didn't want to get mad at her for being protective; it was the most she might have ever hoped for from the woman who considered vampires an abomination but it was so unnecessary! She had a feeling Sheriff Forbes focussed in on Tyler because he was an easier problem than Damon Salvatore who she avoided like the plague.

"What do you suggest then mom? Sell him to some animal lab? Murder the mayor's son?"

Her mother groaned in exasperation at her typical dramatics.

"If I had any conclusive idea I wouldn't be sitting here. One thing I do know is that the next full moon I'll be there."

"Sorry?"

"I want to check his chains and then sedate him before he transforms."

"You can't be serious. Mom I can handle this! I've been handling this for months and he's never hurt anyone."

"_Yet. _With my help the likelihood will be minimised further. Sedating him means he'll be in less discomfort and hopefully if it stays in his system when he turns he'll be a fairly docile killing machine."

Liz shook her head in disbelief as she usually did when she found herself talking about situations completely alien to her experience of life thus far. She almost laughed at the absurdity of it all.

"Mom he'll be in pain regardless and he already kind of sedates himself with wolfsbane, I told you. Besides, mixing drugs into a supernatural thing like this is just asking for trouble. It could have an adverse effect and make things worse! You have no idea what it's like mom. I appreciate the consideration but trust me when I say I've thought of every possible way to help him."

Her mother sighed. "Caroline you already have enough on your plate, you shouldn't have to deal with this as well."

She touched her mother's hand and smiled reassuringly. "I want to, really. He needs me."

She did wonder, however, if her mother's idea of witnessing some of his transformation wasn't a good idea. If she saw the kind of hell he went through every month and that he was still a decent human being afterwards she might have more respect for him. She could see if Tyler would let her tape some of it to screen for her mother and then destroy it. The way things were between them at the moment though probably meant it would be a few more full moons before she broached the subject at all.

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><p>By Saturday afternoon Caroline had done most of her homework, sorted out her committee schedule and emailed the relevant students about responsibilities they had to sort out for the winter wonderland dance. She tried to be glad she had the time to be organised but every time she looked out the window at the ironically bright day she could only think that if she hadn't got half naked in Tyler's car they might be camping right now. She couldn't bring herself to regret her actions, she just hated that Tyler hadn't texted her all day. Brian Maeby's party was on tonight and she knew he was going (they were both on the football team and one of the mystic 'elite') and usually he'd offer her a ride or at least see what time she was going to arrive. The sun was beginning to set and she hadn't got any reply from him. She debated whether it was worth her time even attending but people would expect her to put in an appearance.<p>

She wanted to call Bonnie and ask her what to wear but she felt like it was a trivial request to divert her time from Jeremy over. She missed getting ready with Elena and Bonnie before parties, it tended to be more fun than the party itself. They'd dance around to Britney Spears and try on each other's dresses and usually sneak alcohol from the liquor cabinet. Tonight it was just her staring pensively at herself in her full-length mirror with a large glass of whiskey in her hand. She didn't even have to bother sneaking alcohol anymore, her mother accepted it as a preventative measure for her 'urges'. Besides, it wasn't like the Sheriff needed to worry about her being taken advantage of while wasted. Even completely plastered she could still throw any potential rapist across a room.

At Karen Marshall's party two weeks ago some gatecrasher twice her age had snuck his hand between her legs while she was semi-passed out on an upstairs sofa and she almost snapped his neck in two. She ended up breaking his fingers between her thighs and bruising his throat before pushing him hard to the ground howling in pain. Luckily the music was loud enough to conceal his groaning and no one else was in the large upstairs hallway so she quickly compelled him to forget and that anytime he thought about taking advantage of a girl again he'd remember the pain he was currently in. The jerk deserved a lot worse and she had to muster all her composure through her drunken haze not to sink her teeth into him. Tyler had come up the stairs minutes later with a glass of water for her and raised a curious eyebrow at the dazed guy wandering around next to her with red marks on his throat and obviously crushed fingers. She had shrugged lazily at which Tyler smiled grimly in understanding. He didn't leave her side again the rest of the night.

She took a dress out of her closet and frowned at it in consideration. She was going to go to the party and keep up appearances that she was the reliable party girl, continue to pretend that she was happy. Yet despite everything, when she thought back to resting in Tyler's arms the day before, she wondered if perhaps then, for a moment, she had been.

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><p>Please R&amp;R!<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Chapter 3 is up quicker than I expected and is pretty long so hopefully that will suffice for awhile :) Thank you to all my amazing reviewers, you spur me on! Please keep the feedback coming. At points you might want to smack Caroline upside the head but she's not perfect and nor will she just jump into a relationship with Tyler so be patient :)

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><p>"Caroline! You made it!"<p>

Brian staggered over to her as soon as she'd entered his mansion. The party was heaving with people already so she was glad she'd opted to go without a cardigan. He pulled her into a sweaty hug. Anyone who said you can't smell vodka was lying because inhaling in such proximity to him could have knocked a normal person out cold. He pulled away slightly to look down at her short green halter dress and attempted to whistle appreciatively but ended up just spitting slightly in her face. Luckily, Matt was nearby and tactfully intervened.

"Hey man, mind if I whisk Caroline away for a bit?"

Despite their mutual avoidance, Matt's appearance couldn't have been more welcome in contrast.

"I bet I know what you want to whisk her away for. Front bedrooms are empty upstairs dude."

He gave an over exaggerated wink and Caroline sidestepped in mortification as he made lewd gestures with his hands. To Matt's credit he looked just as uncomfortable and turned away so he could face Caroline while blocking Brian.

"Sorry about him."

"It's not your fault. Besides I'm used to Brian, I'm just surprised he still has a girlfriend."

Matt grinned in agreement. "Yeah what's weirder is that Alice is actually really nice and normal."

"I know right? Love is blind I guess."

They seemed to remember then who they were talking to and the fact 'sore' would be an understatement for the subject they were now on. Fortunately, alcohol might encourage pricks like Brian but it also smoothed out inhibitions so despite the weirdness of being with Matt after weeks of not even glimpsing his face, it felt almost normal. He didn't look as standoffish or caught in the headlights as usual so she guessed he too had drunk a bit.

"Can I get you a drink?"

Caroline nodded politely and couldn't help but feel a thrill of excitement when he bounded away to the kitchen. He didn't need to ask what she'd have, he knew vodka and coke was her preferred poison and, for a moment, she could let herself forget that they weren't dating and pretend this was like one of the many parties they'd attended as a couple. She hadn't dressed up specifically to impress Matt but she got a pleasant satisfaction from knowing he had checked her out before leaving her side and that other males in the area were not so subtly doing the same. She might be thought of as soulless but at least she'd never lose her looks.

"Here ya go." Matt nudged her shoulder playfully as he passed her the drink in a red plastic cup.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

He was staring at like she was his Caroline again. He didn't have that conflicted or faraway look in his eyes like usual and she realised how much she had missed it, being seen again properly. He was pretty trashed which she knew was the main reason for the change but she tried not to let herself care. She could pick up from the smell of his breath that he'd done a few shots of tequila in between leaving her and returning with her own alcoholic concoction. Matt wasn't usually a drinker at all but she knew better than to question him about it and ruin their civil bubble. She knew virtually nothing about his life these days, he could be injecting heroin for all she was aware. This thought in particular had her downing her large beverage in one gulp.

Matt laughed loudly with good humour twinkling in his eyes. "Wow Caroline, am I going have to go back for a refill already?"

She shook her head as the liquid burned down her throat. The drink was more vodka with a dash of cola. She might be supernatural but between his blending and her previous whiskies she was likely to be under the table (or up on one if memory served correctly). She leant back against the staircase and closed her eyes, she tried to sense where Tyler was in the sprawling house but she couldn't hear his voice anywhere. Maybe he hadn't come after all, or knowing Tyler, was communicating with shoulder shrugs and some girl was falling all over herself from his 'brooding exterior'.

So for the next half an hour she talked to Matt about safe subjects such as school classes and their football chances and despite her earlier conviction, she let him refill her cup a few times. The more she drank the better she felt about hanging with Matt and the more enthusiastic he became in talking to her too. She wondered if she ploughed them both with enough liquor if it could suddenly turn back time altogether. Despite her merry mood though she knew she wouldn't be satisfied until she had at least seen what Tyler was up to and hopefully her conversation with him could flow along as successfully. After all, she was feeling so at one with the world, so magnanimous and purposeful she was sure everything would be alright. The world was a good place, Caroline had an awesome life! She'd never age!

She couldn't help but giggle inanely at herself when she pictured their thirty year high school reunion and the faces of her classmates when she turned up all toned and perky and they would be struggling to tuck in middle-aged spread and stapling back their cheeks. Matt was smiling goofily at her and patted her on the head which made them both crack up.

"Why don't we hang anymore Care?"

"I don't know! We totally should. Lets go bowling!"

They tried to high five each other but Matt's coordination at this point was horrendous and he kind of missed her hand and dived it down to stroke her shoulder curiously.

"Your skin still feels pretty cold."

Caroline felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes. It wasn't Matt's fault but she found her mood come crashing down to earth.

"Hey Matt, I've gotta go find Tyler."

Matt nodded seriously and gave her a shaky salute before one of his football friends unceremoniously grabbed him in a headlock and pulled him back roughly into their circle.

She walked around for several minutes scouring the kitchen and wrap around patio before she found Tyler in the downstairs gamesroom holding court at the poker table. She should have guessed. Tyler was always keen to play poker at parties now. He was a pretty good player before becoming a werewolf but now he was an expert at telling if people were bluffing. He would listen in to people's heart rates when they received their cards. If their heart rate shot up it usually meant they had an excellent hand. Similarly, if it increased a lot when they raised a bet it typically meant they weren't that confident on their success or were bluffing. He was also incredibly fast now when he dealt and all the girls that tended to flock around practically melted when they saw his adeptness as he did tricks with the cards. He was such a fucking show off and yet had mastered looking completely bored with the whole thing at the same time.

She stood behind a few of the girls in the crowd who were watching the game and she could tell from the way he paused when shuffling that he had sensed she was there. On her left by the far door were Kimberley and Lena, two of the girls she had emailed earlier in the day that were on the social committee. She waved at them and they mirrored her smile and waved cordially back.

"I should have guessed Caroline would be here. In that dress she's probably trying to get another footballer boyfriend. Remember at Maggie's party, she wore that black tube dress and totally skanked it up to Beyonce on their kitchen table? Such an attention whore."

"Or just whore in general right? She's totally after Tyler Lockwood, she follows him around all day."

Caroline couldn't help but use her vampire hearing when she vaguely thought she heard her name being whispered and she almost felt her jaw unhinge as she tried not to look in their direction.

"I know! Way to learn boundaries jeez, she only broke up with his BFF like two months ago. Besides, Tyler can do way better than Matt Donovan's sloppy seconds."

"Remember when we were fifteen? She used to get drunk off her face and boast about how many guys she could make out with in a night. Looks like she doesn't have all her admirers around her tonight though. They must have realised the self-absorbed prom queen thing has gotten old."

Caroline tried to focus on watching the poker game and not on bursting into tears or banging their heads together. It's funny how in times like these she often swung from uncontrollable rage and violence to timid hurt and betrayal. These girls were supposed to be her friends! Why had everyone in her life decidedly suddenly that she wasn't worth it? What was even more mortifying was that Tyler's hands had clenched around his glass. She could see tiny cracks forming in the side from where he was gripping it with such unnecessary force. She had a sinking feeling that he had been eavesdropping on their conversation also and when he looked up at her with a closed off expression she had it confirmed. She tried to smile to show it was no big deal but it was a half hearted attempt at best.

"Caroline. Take over my hand, I need another drink." He ordered shortly and everyone turned to notice her. She was glad she finally had something to occupy her distressed thoughts with and she obediently walked behind his chair.

"Okay but don't blame me if I-"

He had got up quickly and briefly glanced at her but said nothing and left before she could finish her sentence. She sat down with the other players who looked much more friendly now they believed they were no longer going to get screwed out of their hefty allowances. She gave Lena and Kimberley a hard stare as she picked up her cards and felt smug that they were obviously pissed off that she was once again the centre of attention. She just didn't like that Tyler had blanked her.

* * *

><p>Despite picking up on heartbeats and knowing the rules like Tyler, she wasn't going to make a poker champion anytime soon. Frustratingly, she couldn't master a poker face like he could and because she was drunk, if she got a bad hand she couldn't help pouting and if she got a great hand she bounced unsubtly in her seat. She had lost him all his money within half an hour, another thing to feel guilty about where he was concerned. She finally got up and went to look for him to apologize but he was nowhere to be found. She ran into Matt again in the foyer where he was slumped against the stair banister gesturing wildly to a pretty Asian girl.<p>

"Matt have you seen Tyler?"

He squinted at her and looked upwards pretending to think but she could tell from his terrible acting that he had.

"Matt? It's important." Okay so not really but implying it was 'supernatural' related would yield results.

"He's upstairs with a blonde from the pep squad." He reluctantly divulged. It was sweet that even now he was trying to cover his friend's back.

Her mood had soured dramatically and she willed herself not to eavesdrop on what he was doing upstairs. It was too sordid and invasive to pry like that.

"Okay never mind, I won't interrupt him."

"I'll tell him you're looking for him when he comes down if you like."

"NO! I mean, I'll catch him another time it's not a big deal."

Matt looked confused by her back peddling and the Asian girl was losing interest. She felt bad she had ruined their rapport (okay not really) so she offered to get them both refills just for something to do. She didn't want to leave right away in case Matt told Tyler she'd been searching for him and he assumed she left because of him. She wasn't leaving because of him at all! She had simply reached her alcohol limit before she did something stupid and was too far gone to hold a proper conversation anyway.

She felt beyond miserable by the time she'd refilled two cups full of tepid beer as people around her enjoyed animated conversations with their friends. She missed Elena and Bonnie, she missed Stefan and she especially missed Tyler. It had only been a day since they were joking with each other but now she felt like a gulf had opened up between them that she didn't know how to cross. She texted both Elena and Bonnie (harder than it would seem when her eyes began to blur) that she loved and missed them and then hesitated momentarily before texting Tyler 'sorry'. As if her night couldn't degenerate any further, Brian danced over to the sink and made an acknowledging noise since he had obviously forgotten her name temporarily.

"Shot for the pretty lady?" He slurred.

Caroline considered her options. She could either go home with her dignity and wallow alone in her bed about everything or she could drink herself into blissful oblivion and work the rest out tomorrow.

"Make it two and you're on."

Brian tried to whistle again but Caroline had learnt her lesson and staggered back just in time.

* * *

><p>Four shots later and Caroline was slumped on the couch next to Brian listening to music and trying not to think about Tyler fucking some bimbo upstairs and Matt seducing an Asian goddess. Luckily she was so wasted that she only had a vague recollection of something that she didn't like before someone walked past her or the clock hand moved and her thoughts were immediately drawn away.<p>

"Wanna dance pretty lady?" Brian was leering over at her. He actually was kind of cute in the right light.

"You have a girlfriend Brian."

"I know! She's in New York with her family for the weekend. I love her so so so so much yknow? But that doesn't mean we can't dance!"

His logic was impeccable. Despite admiring his profile she didn't actually have any desire to make out with him, so why the hell not?

"I want to party on the dining table! Coyote Ugly rocks my world!" She screamed happily although by the time she had finished her sentence she had already forgotten what she'd suggested.

"Table dancing it is!"

It took them a good five minutes to wind their way through the crowd to the central table since Brian kept knocking her into things or she tripped in her heels and had to take a moment to stop giggling. By the time they actually made it up onto the table she was beginning to feel slightly nauseas. It seemed really high up and other drunken people were climbing up onto the table to join her so she was having to help lift up others while steadying herself. It was beginning to feel more like manual labour than a good time.

Before she had a chance to reconsider and pass out somewhere comfortable for the night, Brian had grabbed her arms and was waving them in the air in an effort to get her to dance. The next few hours were a blur as she twisted her hips and gyrated against random people in a contented daze. She remembered glimpsing Lena and Kimberley gossiping over the other side of the room. So what if she was predictable? At least she didn't have to have someone attached to her all night.

"Caroline! Do you need a ride home?"

Matt was swaying beneath her as her vision struggled to focus on his lips and what he was saying.

"You can't drive Matt Donovan! You're too much past the limit of what you can-" What was she saying? How was she even planning to get home herself? She just shook her head but hopped down heavily off the table into his surprised arms.

"You rescued me from the table of doom! You're my hero Matt Donovan!" She giggled delightedly, especially when he smiled and moved some of her sweaty hair back behind her ear.

"You seemed to be enjoying yourself to me. Lydia is driving me if you need a ride. She only had one beer, especially since you never returned with our cups."

"Opps! I got sidetracked. I'm so so sorry." She patted his chest after every word just so she could remember the firmness of his body.

"It's okay. I just wanted to make sure you're sorted for the night."

"Totally I'll be fine! Lets hug though okay? Hug out all the worries of the world! World peace Matt! World peace!" She shouted the last part and others cheered her lofty ambitions. People were awesome.

Matt grinned and gave her one of his big bear hugs. She inhaled his familiar scent and felt a type of homesickness, maybe it was a painful nostalgia she was unsure. It wasn't quite as grieving as it used to be though. She kissed him sloppily on the cheek before waving him away.

She wasn't quite sure what to do with herself now Matt had left or what the time even was. There seemed to be less people than earlier but that wasn't saying much considering it had been a sea of bodies before. Now she could actually see the floor but the rapid downwards motion made her want to vomit. If only vampires processed alcohol better than humans. She decided to go out onto the patio where she proceeded to empty her stomach contents into their immaculately pruned bushes. When she heard a few sniggers behind her she staggered out on to their huge lawn and lay down. The stars were beautiful and it wasn't cold enough that she couldn't sleep under them. It would be as close to camping as she was going to get. After what felt like hours she could sense even through her stupor that Tyler was approaching her.

"Caroline get up, we're leaving."

"My heart hurts."

"That's your own fucking fault isn't it?"

His frustrated tone made her want to cry.

"I know. Everything is my fault."

He let out a long suffering sigh that irked her somewhat. She didn't need him to take care of her! She wasn't his burden.

"C'mon Care, your mom will kill you if you don't go home and I don't want you breaking anymore bones."

She smiled, he had called her Care!

"Can you help me up?" He pulled her up by her armpits from behind as she kicked out her legs trying to get traction. Eventually she was able to stay upright with a steadying hand on his chest.

"I'm such a mess." She rested her head down where her hand had been and he stroked her back comfortingly like he had done the day before.

"Are you feeling sick?"

"Not anymore but-"

Before she could finish he had picked her up and flung her over his shoulder as he began striding down the lawn to where the cars were parked.

"Tyler!"

"Caroline I only have so much patience and helping you stagger to the car is not my idea of a good time. Stop wriggling!" He smacked her butt lightly and she burst out laughing as the ground moved rapidly beneath her.

"You're my hero Tyler Lockwood!"

"I thought Matt Donovan was your hero."

"You both are! You're my wingmen!"

Wait, how did he know what she had said to Matt? She was sure he hadn't been in the room. She heard him chuckle despite himself.

"I don't think you quite grasp the concept of what a wingman is."

"You can grasp my butt if you like! It's only fair."

He opened his car door with one hand and set her back down on her feet so she could collapse down on to the seat. He ignored her offer but was smirking at her dishevelled state.

"Put your seatbelt on drunkard." He shook his head in amusement as he rounded to the driver's side and she was still struggling to put the belt around herself. He reached over to do it for her and as soon as she smelt his familiar cologne she felt her stomach lurch for an entirely different reason than before. He was mouth-watering and not just in the sense she wanted to taste his blood, she wanted to lick all of him. She tried not to let it show on her face but she could feel the veins around her eyes beginning to throb and he searched her gaze for something before sitting back with a slight smile.

"I don't need a seatbelt anyway! If I go through the windshield I'll just get back up and be fine."

"Well I'd rather not have to explain that to the insurance company."

"Are you even sober enough to drive?"

"I'll be fine, I process alcohol faster now I'm a werewolf."

"Lucky! How do you know that?"

"Jules told me."

"Oh."

Jules was still a testy topic for them both. Tyler had been upset she had died and Caroline had tried to comfort him but it was rather hollow considering she hadn't liked her. They both tended to avoid mentioning her. She could see his jaw stiffen. He had lost so many people.

She reached out and stroked down his jawline as he closed his eyes and leant into her touch.

"I have no idea how I feel about you Tyler Lockwood."

He smiled tightly and turned her hand over so he could kiss the underside of her wrist. It was a relief to finally be honest with herself and him, she owed him the truth.

"Well that sucks, because I know exactly how I feel about you."

The intensity of his eyes even in the dark made her feel naked all over again. No one had ever gazed at her like that before, the depth of it astonished her.

"And what is that?" She was terrified waiting to hear his answer but he simply rested her hand back down and turned on the ignition.

"You said you didn't want to complicate things. Me telling you right now, that will complicate things."

But it didn't really matter. She already knew how he felt, perhaps had known it for months in the back of her mind. Those indecipherable looks he often sent her weren't so cryptic when she actually made the effort to understand them. She hadn't wanted to until now and even then she didn't know how to deal with the information. She felt tears slipping down her cheeks, she didn't want to be the person who broke his heart. His expression turned to one of concern and he leant over to wipe away her tears with his thumbs.

"It's okay Care, it's my shit to deal with. You don't need to always try and take care of me."

He drove down the dark rural lanes and she wondered if he realised more often than not, he was the one taking care of her. She rested her head back and the next thing she remembered was the chill of the air as strong arms carried her to her door. Tyler had been smart enough to fish her key out of her purse and had opened the door easily and was carrying her to her bedroom. He pulled back her bed covers and lay her down gently as he struggled to take off her strappy heels before tucking her in. She didn't open her eyes because she was sure if she looked up at him she'd beg him to stay. He bent down and kissed her forehead before exiting the room.

Despite her intoxication, she couldn't go back to sleep after he had left because of one heart-stopping fact. Tyler Lockwood was in love with her.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you x infinity again to all my lovely reviewers. You guys make my day and I don't think I'd write in such quantities if it wasn't because I know you love T/C as much as me!

I also added a small Tyler POV for _plausible deniability_ :) It probably wont be the norm but you get a glimpse into his head.

* * *

><p>Several blood bags later and despite having a slight headache, Caroline had escaped the hangover from hell. She even remembered most of the night before, especially the part where she realised one of her best friend's was in love with her. Anytime she recalled the look in Tyler's eyes she felt like she had been winded. She lay in bed restlessly for most of the day. Why couldn't love be simple? Like in <em>The Little Mermaid<em>, Ariel only had to set eyes on Prince Eric to know he was the one. Then again, Elizabeth Bennett didn't realise she was in love with Mr Darcy until she thought she'd lost him.

She couldn't be with Tyler unless she was certain of her feelings and dating him out of gratitude when she was unsure of everything was beyond wrong. He deserved a hundred times better than a wishy washy girlfriend. Yet everything was against them as a couple and what happened if she fell head over heels for him and it didn't work out? She couldn't go through something like she had with Matt again. It would be more painful being rejected by a guy who understood her than one who never really had. Tyler had given her an out, he hadn't confronted her with his feelings and made it his 'issue', not hers. Could she live with the status quo? If it meant keeping Tyler in her life then the answer was a resounding yes.

After she had showered and changed, she drove to the Salvatore house where she knew it was likely Elena was. She didn't want to call first in case she was dissuaded from coming over but she really needed some girl time and after weeks with Damon she could bet that Elena was in dire need of estrogen also.

Unfortunately, when she knocked on the door she was met by a dishevelled Damon. His dark shirt was rumpled and by the way he was squinting at her in the dying light, it seemed unlikely he'd slept in a while either. Her first thought was 'ew' before all encompassing pity wracked her. He was a mess without his saner brother to balance him out.

"Hey Damon, how are you doing?"

He gave her a disgusted look. "Oh excellent, can't you tell?"

"Well your still as sarcastic as ever, you can't be that desolate." It might have been a low blow but she was sick of having her good intentions thrown back in her face.

"What do you want barbie?"

"Is Elena here?"

"No she's not. Not quite the sleuth are we?"

Despite his antagonism she could see he was exhausted and she pushed aside her annoyance as she sidled past him into the house. If he had really not wanted her there he could have tossed her out on her ass.

"Jesus Damon."

His home looked like a bomb had hit it and it smelled much worse. There were books littering the floor, empty blood bags piled up haphazardly by the fireplace and holes dotted the walls where he had obviously punched out his frustrations. She automatically went into action mode as she began to pick up the empty blood bags and threw them into the fire where they shrivelled and melted.

"Caroline I don't need you to play house. Just because Matt doesn't want you doesn't mean I'm willing to tolerate your control freak tendencies."

She was so used to Damon's barbs they didn't even sting anymore.

"Well too fucking bad. Elena is my friend and she cares about you so I'm going to give her one less thing to worry about than and your tantrums. How has she been able to put up with this anyway?"

"She's had other things on her mind." He complained bitterly.

"You mean she's been avoiding you and your craphole?"

"She left Mystic falls."

"Wait, what?"

"She took off yesterday."

Caroline was struck by a sickening dread. "Where has she gone Damon?"

"She and Bonnie went on a road trip. Bonnie has got some supernatural tip off about someone who might know Stefan's location."

Deep hurt clogged up her throat. Damon smiled in smug satisfaction at having finally affected her.

"Guess you're not the go-to girl anymore."

She couldn't understand how they had neglected to tell her, they didn't think having an immortal with superpowers would be helpful? Sure Bonnie was all mega witchy now but she had brute strength and amazing speed. The more ammo the better!

"Why didn't you go after them?"

"I told them it was a terrible idea but they wouldn't listen. So I got drunk and have been so ever since."

This wasn't Damon! He might be a careless asshole with most of the world, but Elena was the exception.

"What aren't you telling me?"

He touched his nose and wiggled his eyebrows. She took advantage of his drunkenness and supersped next to him and ripped off his ring before speeding out of the door back into the sunlight. She narrowly missed being yanked back by her hair as Damon attempted to catch up to her. His reflexes were dulled by liquor, for which she was thankful.

"I repeat, what aren't you telling me?"

"Are you that stupid? You realise in about half an hour when the sun goes down I'm going to kill you."

"No you won't. You love Elena and besides, I'll hide both my ring and yours so that killing me only means you're stuck at the mercy of the sun. Especially now Bonnie is AWOL and I'm not sure she'd be that keen to make you a new magic ring when she finds out you've murdered her best friend. So be a good shithead and tell me what you know."

"You can't mean that much to them if they left without a word."

Caroline shrugged and pushed the betrayal aside. He really seemed intent on making her suffer as much he was. She knew playing it cool was the best defence.

"Whatever they did they have their reasons. I trust them."

Damon rolled his eyes as she tried to look more convinced than she felt.

"Fine! Bonnie located an old witch in Louisiana that might know where Klaus is and they've gone to see her. She hates vampires so we don't get an invite."

"Why is that such a terrible idea?"

"Because the supernatural channels Bonnie used will be infiltrated by Klaus' minions and the witch will be dead before they even get there. That's even if the witch does know anything, which I highly doubt."

"But what if it's a trap! What if they-"

"Klaus doesn't want Elena or Bonnie dead. If he did they wouldn't be breathing right now. He wants Stefan for something and killing his 'one true love' isn't going to earn him any brownie points. They are heading for a dead end, literally."

"You didn't think to _tell_them that?"

"Nope. Elena gets to feel like she has a purpose and I have a few days of peace and quiet. It's a win win."

Caroline shook her head. "It's cruel."

"Potatoes tomatoes Caroline. Now give me back my ring and I won't snap your neck."

She threw his ring behind him and he sighed dramatically. She still couldn't believe that Damon would let Elena be put in potential harm's way but she guessed Bonnie's extreme power was a pretty good shield against anything. Even Klaus would be deterred by it, at least long enough for them to get to safety.

"Considering you've got laid recently you'd think you would be a little less cranky blondie."

"What?"

"Oh please, it's obvious."

Caroline was stunned. He couldn't smell Tyler on her could he? No that was a wolf thing not a vampire thing. She was so curious she didn't even bother denying it.

"How do you know that?"

"You're glowing."

"Really?" She touched her hair self-consciously. She was pretty sure lack of sleep and binge-drinking didn't contribute to a glowing exterior, but life was strange.

"No you idiot. I was passing the school on an alcohol run and saw Tyler's fogged up car. I eavesdropped on you slumming it with the mutt. I forget how loud you are."

She shuddered when she recalled what Damon had done to her. She had accepted what had happened with them but she had never truly forgiven him. She had reached an understanding of sorts. Now that she knew how easy it was to hurt someone without remorse unless you kept yourself attached to some sort of humanity, she had dealt with his abuse. She had killed someone and she knew how simple it was to flick a switch and feel nothing about it. Damon had been at that place when they were 'together', she had never reached it nor did she ever plan to. Most of the time, she just felt sorry for him.

"Whatever Damon. Enjoy your squalor."

She stalked away in revulsion. Tyler was so far above Damon in every respect she didn't even bother dignifying his taunt with a reply. It was funny that in that moment she actually felt grateful for being herself. Damon was a first class fuck up who loved a girl he'd never have and made it everyone's problem. Tyler felt the same way about her and had said nothing for weeks, had just been there for her and even now was reluctant to burden her with the knowledge. She marvelled out how six months ago if you'd asked her who the most mature person she knew was; Tyler wouldn't even have entered her mind. Now, he eclipsed a guy with a good century of experience on him.

Despite her irritation with Damon's self-destructive, petulant antics, he _was_ Stefan's brother and Stefan had taken care of her. It was this gratitude and affection that had her turning around and reluctantly pacing back inside his house before he had managed to fully close the door.

"What the hell are you doing back again?"

"I'm going to play maid, cook us some dinner and then we're going to drink our worries away."

The idea of actually consuming any more alcohol made her stomach churn in protest but her liver was technically dead anyway, it's not like it would do her any harm. She knew the best way to get through to Damon was if he was still pissed.

"Cook us dinner? Are you still pretending to be human? Your old life is over Caroline, get used to it and you might solve half your problems."

She refused to be baited into asking what exactly he thought her problems were despite a morbid curiosity as to his assessment of her.

"We might not _need_food, but I still enjoy it and since mom is working I'd rather not eat alone. Dining is a hallmark of civilisation and I'll have worked up an appetite by the time I've cleaned up your crap."

"You do whatever you like Caroline, I'm going to bed."

She was glad she'd be able to fix things without his provocations the whole time anyway. Within two hours everywhere but his bedroom (she wasn't that desperate) was spotless and she had ordered pizza. Originally cooking had been the plan but there wasn't a scrap of edible food in the house and she was too exhausted to go all the way to the store for supplies.

"Damon! Pizza is here!" She set down the box on the coffee table and reclined in an old armchair with a glass of scotch and a slice of meat lover's pizza.

To her surprise, Damon collapsed into an opposite chair with exactly the same things in his hands.

"Wow."

"What?"

"You actually did what I wanted."

"Yeah well, you're not terrible company and getting drunk alone is becoming a bit repetitive."

She smiled and tried not to show how touched she was by his almost-compliment but by the way he rolled his eyes and scoffed she knew she hadn't succeeded.

"So Caroline, what's with the sudden urge to jump Tyler's bones?"

She frowned and felt her fist clenching her pizza until it began to mush in her hands.

"What's your interest in it? Tyler hasn't done anything so if you even think about-"

"-Down barbie, I'm not gonna hurt him. At least not unless he tries to bite me again."

"Then why do you care?" She couldn't help but be suspicious where Damon was concerned, especially since he was more volatile than usual.

"See that's one of your many mistakes, assuming I care about anything. I don't. However, it's excellent entertainment to watch your love life crash and burn constantly."

"Well Damon here's what you need to know; go screw yourself."

"Well aren't we the bold, protective female today. Is this Tyler's influence or are you suddenly coming to terms with the fact your life sucks?"

Was she more assertive than usual? She didn't really know, it was probably just Damon talking out of his arse as per usual. All she knew was that as soon as Damon mentioned Tyler, she saw red.

"Damon I don't want to talk about Tyler. I want to know how you are and what you've been doing to try and help Stefan."

"Nah uh, quid pro quo. You answer my questions and then I answer yours. It's the _civilised_ thing to do. I asked first."

"Fine. Why did I sleep with Tyler? Because I-"

She felt her heart clench. She couldn't say it, she wouldn't. Not to Damon. Unfortunately he could read her face almost as well as Tyler could.

"Fuck, Caroline. You're in love with that douchebag?"

Before she could even try and battle her instincts, she had lurched across the table and grabbed his throat in her hand. He coughed while trying to laugh before indulging her no longer and grabbing her by the hair and slamming her down into the rug. She felt something in her back break with a sickening crack and the pain that shot through her was indescribable. She could only lie prostrate in agony until she felt it heal itself.

"I'll take that act of stupidity as a yes."

She finally rolled on to her back, breathing hard, but didn't try to get up yet as a dull ache continued to radiate through her body.

"I don't know what to do. I love Matt but then with Tyler it's so different and I think I love him too. How can you be in love with two people and not make them both invalid or insincere in some way?"

She had no idea why she was voicing her inner-most insecurities to Damon of all people, but she was pretty much at her wits end and her usual confidantes were out of state. She guessed since Damon had been royally screwed by love he might have some unique insight. He seemed to take pity on her. He extended his arm and yanked her up so she could stagger to the closest sofa.

"It's simple. You can't."

"Then what would you do?"

Damon sighed. "You mean if I had to pick between dumb and dumber? I'd widen my horizons."

"I'm being serious Damon. It's a bit too late to give me the 'plenty more fish' speech."

"Then I'd eliminate by trial and error. You think you're still in love with Matt? Only one way to find out."

"How?"

"If I have to tell you that you're more hopeless than I originally thought."

Did he have a point? The only way she was going to see how she felt about Matt was to see him again properly. Only this time it wouldn't be with the lies or miscommunication. He would be with the 'real' Caroline. She had come to realise if she didn't give it one last shot she'd always wonder 'what if'. Her stomach dropped when she imagined Tyler's reaction but maybe it really was the only way. Matt would always be the third person in their relationship if she didn't know one way or the other and that would only be delaying the inevitable ruin of any relationship they had. If it worked out with Matt, she wasn't destined to be with Tyler. If it didn't work out with Matt, it would give her and Tyler a clean start. It made perfect sense in her head. She couldn't be with Tyler or the Matt issue would sabotage everything anyway. She had to come to an understanding with Matt once and for all.

"Damon you might be a shithead but you do drop some good knowledge bombs."

Damon slouched back and finished the rest of his drink.

"I am the puppet master. Now I'm bored you should go."

"I haven't asked my questions!"

"So what? I'm sick of your whiny little voice. It's killing my buzz."

"Damon you said-"

"-Nope there you go again with the assumptions. Since when am I the civilised type? If you continue pestering I'll more than happily snap a few more bones just to shut you up."

She sighed, a wall had been put up between them and she knew better than to try and break it down. She was still smarting from her earlier pains.

"Just take care of yourself okay? Stefan isn't going to be happy to return to find you off your rocker bottling your own pee or whatever crazy people do."

Damon chuckled darkly. "You actually think he's ever coming back. Good luck with that theory."

He made drunken shooing gestures as she retreated slowly feeling like a weight had lodged itself in her abdomen. Of course Stefan was coming home! Damon didn't have a magic eight ball. Stefan had to come back, she needed him. She shivered at the idea of having Damon as her vampire role model for all eternity.

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><p>Tyler sat in his room watching <em>Kill Bill<em> drinking on the Sunday afternoon. His mom had made him fold letters into envelopes all day when one of her admin staff had called in sick. Tyler was rather cynical about the convenience of being ill after a Saturday night and after the monotony of hours of folding, labelling and licking down hundreds of envelopes he had wished for the hangover instead.

Still, there was nothing like watching people getting slaughtered with a samurai blade to make his own worries seem inconsequential for a time. It was creepy how drawn in the bloodshed made him feel, it was a good way to sort of vent his own killer urges that usually heightened before the full moon. They were the most disturbing part of his new life. He could take being a killer beast one night a month but he didn't like some of the instincts transferring over into his regular existence. He got even more annoyed when he began to associate Uma Thurman's kickass hotness to Caroline's. He couldn't seem to get that girl out of his head no matter how much he drank or how many impalings he witnessed.

He had heard her come into the party immediately the night before, despite being half way across the house. He recognised the familiar clicking of her favourite heels on the marble floor but he tried to ignore how honed in to her his unconscious mind seemed to be. Then he heard her talking to Matt and he felt his blood begin to boil. It wasn't that they were talking, it was the way they were talking, as if nothing had changed between them or between her and Tyler. She even suggested they go bowling and his irritation mounted to the point he deliberately tuned out her tipsy ramblings. Last week he might have found them cute.

Later, he had sensed her come into the gamesroom and he had successfully avoided her eye until he picked up his name in a bitchy conversation and he couldn't stop himself from gauging her reaction. He wanted to stalk across the room and demand they apologize for being such malicious jerks but then Caroline had given him a watery smile and he had come to the end of his patience. Once again she was pretending; pretending with Matt, pretending she was fine and always pretending with him.

Anytime he ever looked her at with raw feeling she always got this confused, fearful look in her eye that Tyler had come to accept was going to be the norm. She was in total denial about how he felt and he clung to the hope that she was similarly oblivious to her own feelings. After they had slept together she went back to pretending and here at the party once again she was keeping up the act. He made her take over his poker hand so he could clear his head before he threw his glass at the wall and he knew Mindy would trail behind him. She was a year below them on the pep squad and it was well known she was slowly making her way through the football team. Tyler had usually resisted so Caroline wouldn't think he was a complete tool but at that point he had given up trying to please her and preferred to please himself.

Which he did. He had exchanged a cordial nod with Matt on the stairs as he was dragged up to a bedroom. They made out for a while until she shimmied down off the bed and yanked down his jeans. He had sat up and leant forward to help her up to show it really wasn't necessary but she seemed determined and he was hardly a saint. Luckily, Mindy was a realist and after she had wiped her mouth and Tyler had regained the use of his lungs, she simply gave him a sultry smile and exited the bedroom. He lay on the bed in the darkness for hours just listening to people's conversations and the sound of the music, he was too pissed off and confused to want to go down and make conversation.

Despite himself, an hour later he honed back in on Caroline as he heard her heels swivelling and bouncing downstairs that indicated she was dancing. He contemplated going down just to watch her but since he had memorised her half naked he could pretty much imagine her in any situation anyway. He knew how she danced, effortlessly sexy and endearing at the same time. He could even guess what dress she had chosen to wear and it was this thought that made him feel truly pathetic. What the hell had happened to him? This was why he'd always loathed the idea of being in love and avoided it altogether. She could do something ridiculous and he'd forgive her, he only had to inhale her familiar scent to be comforted. No one person should have that much power over someone's thoughts and happiness. He wanted to resent her for it but he couldn't, when he wasn't feeling miserable, he had never been so happy. It was a fucking

It was ironic that he'd spent so much time having casual sex and 'no strings' arrangements to delay such an annoying identity crisis and then he went and fell in love with a friend he had barely even kissed. It was like he was destined to get screwed over one way or another.

The dilemma was that he knew how he felt, but then what? He'd never had a healthy relationship in his life. Even if Caroline did feel the same way, he'd probably fuck it all up anyway. The idea of selfless nobility was a good excuse for not being honest with Caroline but the truth was, he was scared out of his mind. He was contemplating his grim circumstances when he heard Caroline speak to Matt again. She was slurring drunkenly that he was her hero and asking to hug him. Could she be any more obvious? Matt would always be his friend but he could have ripped out his heart in that moment. Did he not realise how lucky he was? Even after all the crap he had put her through she was still trying to make him happy. Caroline was Matt's own personal doormat and it baffled Tyler. _He_ knew who she was, that girl downstairs right then, it wasn't

He got up to leave when, instead of accepting a ride home or trying further to be with him, Caroline simply told him she'd be fine and didn't seem to mind him leaving with a random girl. He scolded himself for the surge of hope that shot through his body and grew even more frustrated that he'd become more emotional than his mother when she was PMSing.

So he would stick to the basics. Get Caroline and make sure she got home safely. He promised himself he'd never let her end up in a situation like she had at a previous party where she had to fend off perverts. He was glad she had broken a few bones because if he'd arrived any earlier he would have killed the guy. He might still be angry with Caroline but he put it to the back of his mind and went to retrieve her.

He had found her lying in the grass searching the stars in solitary wonderment. It was an exercise in patience to get her to the car and the combination of her non-sequitur rambling and comical clumsiness had him wanting to kiss her all over again.

Then, finally, she was honest. She told him how she felt about him which annoyingly was completely unknown to her. He couldn't be disappointed though, she had told him the truth. In return, he had hinted at his own. He was just glad she had stopped the charade. When he had searched her eyes his heart began to race. There was no longer fear, only desire. He liked to think of it as progress, only he was dubious she remember any of it in the morning. So they were at an awkward stalemate and he was relieved she had dropped quickly to sleep so he could take her in without her notice. He would wait for her next move and go from there, if he could handle having all his bones snap and contort under his skin, he was hopeful he could handle heartbreak.

She was the most beautiful, frustrating, amusing, courageous person he had ever met and she had changed his life. He wouldn't give up on her, even if it meant resisting the urge to strangle her occasionally.

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><p>AN: Please R&R! Don't be upset with Caroline, she is confused and struggling with her new reality. No one is perfect but we have to hope she'll come to her senses and work a few things out soon.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I know I kinda bummed you guys out last chapter so I think you'll be happier with this one :) Please keep reviewing, even if it's to tell me you hate something. It all helps!

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><p>Caroline stood in front of Matt's house after leaving Damon. She thought it was best to enact her plan before she had time to chicken out or see Tyler and change her mind. She hated that she suddenly felt unsteady on her legs and mildly faint. Maybe her hangover was catching up with her after all but she refused to give in to it and knocked quickly.<p>

"Caroline."

Matt seemed pleasantly surprised to see her. This was a good start.

"Hi Matt. How are things?"

"I've felt better but that's tequila for you." He rubbed the back of his head tiredly as he silently ushered her in.

"Yeah I felt pretty groggy this morning."

"I didn't realise vampires could get drunk."

"Well we do, just as inadvisably as humans."

It still tasted bitter coming out of her mouth, distinguishing herself from 'humans'. She wished she didn't have to.

"So what can I do for you?"

That was the million dollar question. "Do you want to go to dinner tomorrow night? It's my one weekday I don't have extra-curriculars and I know you don't have football practice. I figured we could catch up properly, if you want."

Matt beamed.

"I'd really like that. I've missed you Care. I regret some much about the way I've acted towards you, I just didn't know how to make it better. I've wanted to talk to you again but I guess I was..scared. It sounds stupid now but I guess I was protecting myself."

Caroline's face fell and Matt lurched forwardly hastily to put a hand on her shoulder.

"I didn't mean like I was scared you'd hurt me, I just mean I was scared of entering that world. A world where my friends are vampires and werewolves. If I stayed away I could protect my sanity and pretend the world was the simple place it was a few months ago. It has just meant that it was a lot to take in."

Caroline nodded bravely. This wasn't a surprise, she knew they hadn't avoided each other out of hatred, it was more an awkward wariness.

"I understand. So I take it by wanting to go to dinner you're okay with it all now?"

He shrugged his shoulders but rewarded her with an earnest smile.

"I've realised you and Tyler were my friends because you are great people I've shared memories with. That's all I focus on now, the rest is kind of irrelevant. So what if Tyler becomes a wolf or you drink blood? Some people are jugglers or have foot fetishes or can't swim. I've lost enough people in my life, I don't want to push you guys away anymore."

Caroline practically jumped into Matt's arms and clung to him for dear life. She was embarrassed that she began to cry into his blue T-shirt but luckily he couldn't see her reddening checks as her face was buried in his chest. It wasn't just Matt's acceptance that had reduced her to tears but the reminder that she wasn't a freak. There were terrible people in the world, awful 'human beings' who killed and hurt and indulged in all sorts of evils. Being a human didn't automatically give someone a free pass or element of superiority. She was a good person, a vampire who fought her essential nature. Not because of her 'humanity' (because humanity in general wasn't all that great sometimes) but because of love of others and of life.

Then, the oddest revelation occurred to her. Matt wasn't better than her. She hadn't even realised that she had ever even thought that he was but in that moment a sense of empowerment washed over her. While she had always craved his understanding, when she got it, she realised she hadn't really needed it. Matt had given her the best gift of all, he had given her an insight into the ability to accept herself. She wouldn't be wearing a 'vampire and proud' shirt or anything but she had overcome death and the potential for a soulless, murderous existence and flourished in her own way. _She _had truly been the only one standing in her way for peace of mind.

"Sorry I think I soaked your shirt."

He chuckled and stroked her hair. "I think I'll get over it."

"So dinner tomorrow, at the grill at eight?"

"Sure thing."

She stepped back and tried to subtly wipe away her massacre stains and snot.

"I'll see you tomorrow."

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><p>Caroline was wary about seeing Tyler at school on the Monday. She had no idea what to say to him after everything that had transpired. She just knew as soon as she saw him her mouth would run away from her as a way to try and distract herself from the sex appeal he effortlessly exuded. His smell, that alone had her body in a frenzy and it was total self-sabotage when she was going for platonic harmony.<p>

It was at lunch that their paths finally crossed. She had sat at their normal lunch table and Tyler had joined her as usual. It was painfully obvious that they were both keeping up the appearance of the everyday but finding the reality of such familiar actions to now be stilted and difficult. It didn't help when Matt decided to join them also.

"Hey guys."

Tyler looked momentarily surprised at his friend's appearance but schooled his expression into calm neutrality as he watched Caroline greet him with a winning smile.

"Hey Matt!" Caroline was positive she was grinning like an idiot but she was just so happy to have a third person to diffuse the tension since Tyler evidently feel like talking to her.

They chatted about normal subjects but Tyler still had barely uttered a syllable, which wasn't a new thing for him, it was just the way he observed their interactions with quiet calculation that made her uncomfortable. She didn't think she had ever been so relieved to hear the end lunch bell.

"So I'll catch you at eight Caroline. I'm buying."

He gave Tyler a conciliatory pat on the back and left. Tyler had made no move to leave, he was simply staring at her with a hard expression she didn't appreciate.

"Spit it out Tyler!" Her discomfit and insecurity had boiled over.

"Why bother? Nothing can penetrate that deluded Caroline bubble you construct for yourself. I'm sick of trying."

He slowly picked up his books and walked away without looking at her again. Her stomach dropped with the cold weight of guilt and hurt. She tried to distract herself from yet another disagreement with Tyler by going to the bathroom to reapply her lip gloss and check her hair. She might feel like shit but she didn't need to look like it. Mindy Redman and her friend Carly Beck swept in right after her and entered the toilet cubicles where they continued their conversation as if she wasn't there. Caroline would have been grateful for such an inane diversion as bathroom gossip. This time, not so much.

"Tyler is the best fuck ever. Seriously! He's totally ripped and those lips are to die for. I think it's extra hot he's so rich but I'd do him anyway. The trust fund turn on is just a bonus."

Caroline could have laughed in incredulity at such a crude assessment of her friend but she had been busy concentrating on not ripping the sink from the wall. Who the fuck did she think she was talking about him like that? He was more than money and a body she fantasized about way too much. Such righteous anger on Tyler's behalf (although she was convinced being called 'the best fuck ever' would have had him smirking) was easier to cope with than the pressure at the back of her eyes and unreasonable despair that was mounting.

What she did next was not her proudest moment. The overwhelming influx of conflicting emotions that she had never experienced before snapped something that had been chipped at over the last few days. She wondered if this was how Damon felt like when he did something dreadful, a kind of calm control that flushed out every other concern. She waited with zen-like patience for Mindy and Carly to exit the toilet stalls before compelling Carly to leave and then she grabbed Mindy by the back of the head and slammed her face into the mirror. It was like Caroline was watching her actions from a distance as she then yanked Mindy's arm back until it broke with a loud crack. Mindy was too shocked to even scream, she simply whimpered and cried as blood gushed from her now misshapen nose. Caroline then threw her to the ground and probably would have killed her (the smell of blood was making her ravenous) if she hadn't caught her reflection in a large shard of mirror on that floor that was glinting in the sun. She drew back in horror. She had looked blank, like her soul had vacated her eyes momentarily and this unrecognisable image of herself stunned her back into reality. She dry heaved into the sink and collapsed shaking to the floor next to Mindy who was too paralysed to move. What the hell had just happened? Did she seriously mutilate some pathetic bimbo because she said something Caroline disapproved of?

"I'm so sorry."

She compelled Mindy to be silent and accept her blood to heal her, when Caroline had straightened her nose back into place and held her arm as it righted itself she wiped the blood away with wet toilet paper.

"You'll forget this ever happened. You will have a great day at school and gain some self-worth so that you don't need to receive validation from guys through your body. Find some wonderful guy who isn't Tyler and fall in love."

With that last compulsion completed Mindy wandered out of the door as if waking slowly from a confusing dream. Caroline sat among the shattered pieces of mirror for a long time trying to collect her thoughts. She wished Stefan was around, he would reassure her that she had just had a slip or that she was bottling too much up inside and needed a girls' night with Bonnie and Elena. In that moment she felt completely bereft of any anchorage. As a last resort, she called Damon and tried to keep the hysteria in her voice to a minimum as she retold the story.

"You beat up that slutty school spirit chick? Can those girls really afford to lose any more brain cells?"

"Ha ha Damon. I'm kind of having a crisis, some advice would be nice. Is this some kind of vampire psychotic break? Am I going to go dark side like Willow in _Buffy_ and start flaying people alive?"

"Look just chill out. Shit happens. You're still a young vampire and surges of emotions at that stage are notoriously difficult to control. Stefan once massacred an entire convent of nuns when one of them gave him a dirty look coming out of a Parisian brothel. I'm impressed you managed to stop yourself."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, they are kind of like rage blackouts, you usually don't get steering back until the bloodshed is over."

Caroline sighed. Just another fun fact about her new life.

"So what can I do to stop them?"

"Vent your violent urges. You might not even realise you have them until it's too late. Go hunt animals, have a lot of sex, take up kick boxing, whatever. Pretending everything is okay is the worst thing you can do. Your subconscious will eventually lash out and they tend to be dark, messy places."

"Thanks Damon." She truly was grateful, he had calmed her down and rationalised her actions so she didn't have to fret for the rest of the day about demonic possession or eating Matt for dinner.

"Just doing my duty. Stefan wouldn't want you going off the deep end when he had wasted so much time with you already. Just remember, everything is about attitude, you can let this send you on a shame spiral or you can see it for what it really was."

"Which is?"

"A victory."

"Okay."

She thanked him a few more times before he got uncomfortable with such an outpouring of sentiment and abruptly hung up. He was right, she had been strong enough to fight for her conscience back and as soon as school was over she'd sign up for kickboxing at the local gym since sex was the last thing she needed to be dwelling on.

* * *

><p>Caroline left the gym in the evening and braced herself against the chill in the air as she walked across town to the gym. She hadn't checked her phone for a message from Tyler for almost an hour and she had no real reason to expect one. She hadn't tried to contact him in case it antagonised things but anytime her mind reminded her that he was angry and hurt it felt like a kick in the guts. She wanted to sort things out but she knew she couldn't until she knew where she stood with Matt, the idea of him being out there fuming at her though was almost more than she could take.<p>

Matt was already sitting at a booth when she arrived and happily waved her over.

"Hey Care! How was the rest of your day?"

Caroline hesitated. She didn't dare tell him she'd almost beat a student to death, it was a bit soon for that kind of sharing.

"It was fine, I signed up for a kickboxing class at the gym."

"That sounds good! I just picked up my roster for next week."

"I probably should have picked somewhere more original to eat huh?"

Matt laughed and passed her the menu.

"Nah it's okay, I get a discount and I know which meals are good. Could be worse. Remember when we tried that little Lebanese place?"

Caroline giggled. "Please don't remind me, my stomach will have stress flashbacks. Wasn't that like our third date? It finished with me puking in the bathroom the rest of the night."

"We were trying to be adventourous! They shut the place down anyway."

Caroline already knew she'd order nachos, they were her favourite thing on the menu, so she gave Matt her full attention and watched as he animatedly told her how the health inspector had wrestled the Lebanese chef to the ground because he had kept insulting his beard and that the chef was undeterred and now two towns over was opening a similar establishment.

"So what's in the place of the Lebanese restaurant now?"

"Thai."

They both gave each other a sceptical look and grinned.

"Do we dare?"

"I think we should try it sometime. How about we go for lunch next week? That way if you end up puking you can at least get the rest of the day off school."

"I like the way you think Matt Donovan!"

They ordered their meals and drinks as Caroline relaxed back into the booth while Matt tried to tactfully reply to a text.

"Who was that?"

"Oh Lydia. I just told her about us going to Thai and she said it's actually really good. Her mom is an amazing cook, I didn't know there was so many delicious noodle dishes."

She tried to be jealous that he was talking to Lydia about their plans but she was instead struck with how joyful he was. Just retelling the wonders of noodles had him beaming like he'd singlehandedly won the superbowl.

"Lydia seems nice. I don't know her that well."

"Yeah she only moved here from Flordia last year. She has a huge family and they're always inviting me around for dinner or games night. It's cool they're all so tight knit and welcoming."

She didn't want to ask if they were dating, not necessarily because she'd be devastated but more because she didn't want to make him uncomfortable or seem like she was digging. He was on such a high she didn't want to ruin it.

"That's awesome. I love board games, I've been trying to play them with Tyler but he's always so half-hearted about it and lets me win. You'd think as a fellow only child he'd be as competitive as me but he just doesn't make an effort in order to spite my quest for victory. I can't rub his face in it if I win when he's not on form and he knows it. It's a hollow feeling."

Matt burst out laughing and Caroline couldn't help but imitate him, his mood was so infectious.

"What's so hilarious?"

"Just how seriously you take it, Tyler probably didn't know what to do with you. As guys we usually try anything to get one up on each other but with girls it's different and weird doing that."

"No he knew exactly what was going on, he was just being a spoil sport." She tried to look peeved but a warm swell of affection at the memory of Tyler rolling his eyes and hiding her houses in monopoly ruined the intended effect.

"Tyler is like your guy now huh?"

Caroline studied Matt carefully but he didn't look jealous or upset, more genuinely curious. She guessed it made sense, before this year they had nothing in common and barely interact except to snark at each other. They were still quite different now but it was in a way that made them work rather than had them scowling or ignoring each other like before.

"Yeah, I guess he is."

Their meals arrived before Matt could make any further reply and the rest of the evening passed in a blur of reminiscing and joking. Whatever the outcome, Caroline couldn't regret reaching out to him. As they remerged out of the grill, the temperature had dropped even further and in her light jacket Caroline was shivering.

"Here."

Matt took off his bomber jacket and wrapped it tenderly around her shoulders. She stared up at his concerned attentions and knew it was now or never. She lightly touched his shoulders as she leant forward to kiss him. He kissed her back and his warm mouth on hers was a pleasant distraction from the cold but after a few minutes she realised...that was about it. It was nice, familiar and she felt comfort but it was a shadow of what she had hoped for. She drew back awkwardly and watched their smoky exhales. Matt chuckled in a way she knew was simply to ease the tension. Unlike Tyler, he too liked to smooth things out. Tyler could exist in loaded silence for as long as it took to get what he wanted and it had always flustered her annoyingly.

"So that was a surprise."

"Yeah I may have had ulterior motives for this dinner."

Matt wrapped a friendly arm around her shoulder as they walked towards her house.

"Let me guess. You wanted to see if the old spark was still there?"

Caroline practically shrivelled in humiliation.

"Am I so pathetically obvious?"

He kissed the side of her head. "Nope but that was exactly what I was doing too."

"Thank god for that. I felt like such a limpet!"

"So, verdict?"

Caroline hesitated, she had to tell him the truth.

"We still have a spark but it's not romantic anymore, right? You were my first love and a part of me will always love you but it's different now."

Matt let out an audible sigh.

"I absolutely agree."

Caroline linked her arm through his and leaned on him in contentment as they walked quietly down the tree lined street. Just like that all her unresolved feelings had dissolved. It was then she finally understood what Tyler had been trying to tell her but her doubts had clouded her vision and spurred her on to idealise what 'could be' with Matt. She had recognised it first in the restaurant when instead of being jealous she'd been happy for Matt but the physical proof had hammered it home. She had been struggling for a fantasy.

"So you and Lydia huh? You were totally gushing earlier."

Matt practically radiated heat from his blush.

"It's still early days, we're only friends right now."

"She wouldn't introduce you to her family if she didn't like you. I'm a girl, trust me."

Matt chuckled. "I'll refer to you for wisdom in the future then."

"It's great you're happy, that you have a family through Lydia. You deserve it."

"Thanks Care. Although I think my happiness is more to do with having you back than anything else. So what are you going to do about Tyler?"

"You want me to talk to him for you? He's all stony on the outside but inside he's total marshmallow for you I promise." She gave him a playful nudge, the icing on the cake would be for Tyler and Matt to reconcile properly. Tyler needed him.

"No I meant with you and him. The guy is so in love with you it's almost funny watching him pine and brood like I've never seen before. This would be the time where I'd bust his chops and get him back for all the grief _he_ ever gave me about you. Only I feel like until you actually get your act together I'm never going to be able to rile him up in a way that doesn't have him shooting me the death glare."

Caroline was stunned. Had she been so stupid that even Matt (who wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed) had been aware of how Tyler felt and his own position in their mess? She wanted to die of shame. Only then she remembered his words about Tyler being so in love with her and her heart shot so high she worried it would jump out of her gaping mouth. She loved him too! It was so obvious in retrospect! She spent all her time with him, his mouth and hands set her on fire and most importantly, she missed even his most frustrating quirks. Everything made total sense! The earth shattering understanding of it all that she had been denying to herself had found an outlet in violence when she had unconsciously felt it being threatened. She had thought Matt and her love for him had been her humanity but somewhere down the line her heart had found a home in Tyler and he had embraced it long before she knew it had been missing. She began to feel dizzy again and was craving a blood bag as all the information belatedly whizzed around her brain. When it rains, it really fucking pours.

"Caroline? You still with me?"

"Not so much."

Luckily they had reached her porch and she was spared having to verbalise her sudden reasoning.

"Well thank you Care for a great evening, I'll be holding you to our Thai endevour."

She smiled dazedly.

"I'd like that." Although she had already forgotten his question as he waved goodbye and left. Caroline was in a Tyler-filled lala land she hoped never to return from.

First thing in the morning she was going to cancel her kickboxing. Tyler Lockwood was not going to know what had hit him.

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><p>AN: Da-da! No more silly Caroline! It's all on from here :)


	6. Chapter 6

Sorry it's been awhile, uni has sucked out any creative energy I may have had. The next months are gonna be brutal so I'm not sure how frequently I'll be able to update. I quickly wrote this chapter to keep you going. It's probably not great but I guess it's better than nothing!

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><p>Sheriff Forbes had always had a hard time getting Caroline to sleep when she was little. She would read her a fairytale where the princess lived happily ever after but it was never enough. Caroline always had to question what happened next and the word that was the bane of existence to all parents continued to pop out of her mouth like a broken record; 'why?'<p>

_Why_ did she live happily ever after? _Why_ did they love each other? _Why_ did the prince fall in love with her in one day?

Sheriff Forbes, feeling insecure within her own marriage, was at a loss for answers. She had assumed with some pride that her young daughter was already questioning the validity of such shallow, simplistic portrayals of love, but it was the exact opposite. Caroline wanted every fibre of the story to be reinforced out of her mother's imagination, to hear how the prince loved her because she was beautiful and kind or it was his destiny. She craved to be told that the beautiful dress the princess wore was locked in a special wardrobe so that every year the couple could re-enact their first dance at the ball or balcony meeting. She wanted any authorative voice to tell her even after decades they still laughed together. Her daughter desired to have new life breathed into the lines of her favourite stories. She had picked up on the tension between her parents and in her own way demanded an alternative. Her reward had always been the reply 'because that's just the way it is' and would scold her daughter's restlessness as she kicked off her covers and moaned she wasn't tired. It was the first time Caroline had ever heard the term 'ants in your pants' when her mother had struggled in frustration to anchor her to the bed.

It was as Caroline lay in that same room after saying goodbye to Matt, that she kicked off her restricting bed sheets and felt the saying was once again appropriate. Only this time she was fretting about her own romance, not one inked into her tattered books. What was she going to say to Tyler? She had to do for Tyler what her mother could not; she had to reassure him that she loved him beyond reason and yet all the reasons why. It had to be in an orderly list so she wouldn't be pouring her heart out until Christmas. She had to have conviction, yet not be too sappy. This would be a moment she'd remember for the rest of her life and that was a long fucking time.

Her brain was exhausted, she was sure she could physically feel it throbbing in her skull. There were another five hours until she had to get up for school, it was forever! After another hour of watching the red numbers of her digital clock blink by, she had made up her mind. She'd go see Tyler now. The bold approach had worked wonders with Matt, so why not? Of course she'd still recite on the way things she'd say such as a) he was ridiculously handsome b) his smile made her melt c) he was charming even when he was riling her up…She wondered if perhaps she shouldn't open with his looks in case she seemed too shallow. Yet what was the point in pretending? He already knew everything she was, it was a bit late to try and change now. She quickly put on her sneakers and exited her house before she could talk herself out of it and round and round in circles again.

It was a good twenty minutes of walking down empty streets that got less and less populated before, in her deliriously overtired brain, she recognised that she was an idiot not to have taken the car. At her current rate she wouldn't arrive for another half an hour and it was still freezing. In her heated bedroom she had been fine with tiny linen pyjama shorts and a flimsy T-shirt but now she was beginning to identify with Bridget Jones chasing down Mark Darcy only without the encouraging soundtrack. When she reached the midway point between their houses the draining tiredness began to catch up to her with every slow exertion of her muscles. Love endured! Ariel endured being mute for days to win Prince Eric and Arwen sacrificed her immortality for Aragorn. She was Caroline Forbes, she'd suck it the hell up.

After what seemed a painful eternity, Caroline arrived at Tyler's large veranda and circled around the house to slip through one of the downstairs windows. After tip-toeing up the large staircase and down the corridor away from the master suite, she paused at Tyler's bedroom door before entering quietly and finding him sitting up in bed in the dark.

"Caroline?"

He turned on his lamp and oh god…he had no top on. He seemed to be assessing her in a similar way because his gaze drifted up the length of her bare legs and he gulped.

"I-"

Oh shit. What was she meant to say? Sexy, smile, eyes, mouth…what was the freaking list? The gutter her mind had decided to inhabit was disrupting her higher brain functions.

"I'm your…Arwen."

She frowned in frustrated confusion. That was her opening gambit? So unbelievably lame. She stood dithering in the doorway and bit her lip. Her mind had drawn a complete blank. In the time she had been wracking her brains for her perfectly organised declaration speech (all good love stories had one!), Tyler had approached her slowly, as if worried any sudden movement would have her scuttling away. He closed the door carefully behind her and she was frozen in place once she caught the vague trail of his cologne. She stared into his dark eyes as he moved to stand across from her and felt her heart expand; this was exactly where she needed to be and yet she was scared witless. How was that fair? He searched her face for a moment that seemed to stretch into the night before he grabbed the back of her head and kissed her desperately. It was the only way she could describe the frenzied way his hands caressed every part of her available while his mouth attacked her lips one moment and then whispered across her eyelids, cheeks, collar bone. She returned his fervour in relief. After a long, blissful while they paused to catch their breath as Tyler backed away slightly from the door he had walked her against.

"No."

She didn't want him moving away. She reached out her hands for the waistband of his pyjama bottoms and dragged him back to her laughing in surprise. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tightly as his intense body heat radiated warmth through her. His hands were stroking her back in their familiar rhythm and she felt…complete. Like all the bits of the puzzle had clicked together.

"It's about time." He whispered gently in her ear and pulled her hair to the side so he could lay a kiss on her shoulder.

"I had a speech." Of course she hadn't needed it; she should have guessed he only had to glance at her to work her out. Perhaps that was the key with real love, it couldn't truly be described in words on a page or in impassioned speeches. It existed in the quiet moments, the unspoken understanding.

"I bet you did. You can tell it to me tomorrow."

She nodded and yawned as he walked them both to the bed with his hands around her waist.

"Nice sneakers."

"Shut up." She grinned at his cheek and haphazardly hopped around trying to take one shoe off at a time while standing up half asleep. Tyler was lying on his back on the bed chuckling at her efforts before pulling her down and taking them off for her. It was odd how sneaker removal could seem so sensual. It was the slow care he took on something so inconsequential. He gave her an appreciative smile as he lifted up the covers and she scooted in to the far side of the bed as he collapsed into the other and hugged her to him. She fitted.

"Tyler?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you want to hear the speech highlights?"

He was evidently too tired to talk because he nodded into her neck.

"I love you. That was my main point. Also I'm an idiot, but I'd rather you dwell on the eternal devotion thing and not the blind numbskullery bit."

He squeezed her tighter but the last thing he did was repeat with merriment her invention of the word numbskullery before he fell asleep. Tyler's low rumbling laugh, she was adding it to the list.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Yay I actually somehow banged out a chapter! Hope you like it :)

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><p><em>Four months later<em>

"So Caroline, how is school going?"

Caroline would have laughed at Mayor Lockwood's permanently pinched expression if her nerves weren't screaming 'run away' in the back of her mind. At least school was topic she could ace.

"It's going great. The only real downside is trying to balance all my extracurricular activities and not having time for more community outreach programs. If only there were more hours in the day! I guess you feel like that with being the mayor and all."

If only she knew Caroline could thrive on only three hours a night but she was adept at telling people what they wanted to hear, even if it was oozing with cheesy can-do optimism that she was far from feeling. She expected to see Tyler trying to conceal a smirk at her pageant answers but he was looking as bleak as the atmosphere around the dinner table. This family dinner at the mansion had been his fucking idea and she was beginning to resent that he wasn't playing along with her hyper-exuberant façade. Anyone would think he was being paid to date her by the way he was staring down his potatoes.

"Yes, quite."

Silence.

"This dinner is fantastic Mrs Lockwood. I didn't know you were such a talented cook!"

She omitted the part about how she had always thought Carol Lockwood had the caterers on a first name basis and speed dial.

"I'm not. We have a cook Lena and yes she is very good. I'll pass on your compliments."

"You have a cook?"

She guessed with a house this size there would be 'servants' but she had never seen one. Although to be fair, she had never even seen their kitchen. She had an absurd image of Tyler's mom chaining the cook to the oven and hiding the maid in the cloakroom for when guests arrived. Mrs Lockwood just smiled tepidly at her echoing and speared a runner bean with her fork.

_run run run run run run_

After several long minutes of clinking utensils Caroline was just waiting for the ominous tumbleweed when Tyler finally spoke up.

"I'm going to take Caroline camping. I was thinking next weekend, we don't have any parties I have to attend that I should know about?"

Caroline waved her hand in a dismissive manner as she reached to pour herself a very large glass of wine with the other one.

"We'll talk about this later Tyler."

Tyler sighed and finally gave Caroline a sympathetic look that she refused to return. He must have known the idea of him going out of town would be a touchy subject, let alone with a vampire she didn't trust but he just _had_ to bring it up anyway.

"I can't go camping anyway Tyler, I'm organising the winter formal all weekend, it's only a month away."

Not that he had even asked asker.

"Well that's settled. Whose ready for dessert?"

She could feel the tension rolling off her boyfriend in waves as he struggled to put down his knife and fork without bending them backwards. She didn't feel sorry for him, this was a ridiculous mistake and it was only when his fingers had thrusted harder inside her to the point she had almost forgotten what he was even saying that she had said yes to it. It was in between 'oh god' and 'more' so she didn't think it was fair that it had been taken as consent. By the end of the evening she was almost looking back on her cage torture with fond memories when he reached for her hand on the porch.

"I'll take you camping one day you know."

Caroline sighed. "I'd rather not. Not when you've used it as a ploy to piss off your mom. I'm going to go."

"Look I know you're angry with my mom-"

"No I'm not. Well not right now. You're actually my problem at the moment."

Tyler groaned in this patronising way that meant he was steeling himself to listen to whatever 'insane rambling' she was about to unleash as if she was a complete hysteric all the time. Okay she could get shitty over minor things like when he called her mother a frigid bitch under his breath when she glared at him around town or how he always tried to have sex during her favourite movies. He complained that she had already seen them a million times but she would huff that he wasn't respecting things she valued. He never apologised and they usually both ended the argument believing each was in the right so the only way to work it out was to fuck. It was the only thing she could call it, it wasn't making love like usual it was a silent battle of wills and domination until they were both exhausted and curled up together with an 'agree to disagree'. They had always been opposites and despite the fact she'd take a stake through the heart for him, he could often drive her crazy.

"What have I done now?"

"Why do you make it sound like everything is all in my head? Matt did that!"

"Oh really? You're going to compare me to your ex? Are you trying to piss me off more?"

Caroline sighed, she knew bringing up Matt was like waving red in front of a bull but it didn't mean it wasn't the truth.

"You deliberately irritated your mom, dragged me into the equation by ambushing her with a camping trip I didn't even know about but which she'll probably assume I manipulated you into and completely ruined the dinner!"

"Oh yeah up until that point it had been going great, I totally brought down the mood."

"You don't need to be sarcastic." She folded her arms in exasperation.

"Look it was shit at the beginning and continued to be shit until the end. Bringing up a camping trip didn't change that, I was trying to prove a point!"

"What point? Why did we even do the dinner if you knew it would be about as pleasant as waterboarding?"

"Because!"

He opened his mouth, fisted his hands and closed it again, obviously not bothering to even attempt to explain himself.

Caroline laughed. "Well that solves everything. I'm going home."

She was fuming as she stomped to her car but by the time Beyonce came on the radio and she was nearing her home she had already forgotten she hated his guts. The song _telephone_ reminded her of the month before when they had gone to a club in the city (she loved being able to compel her way to underage clubbing and extreme intoxication) and he had held her against him as they danced together and he had death-glared any guy that came near her. That kind of level of possession might have annoyed other girls but she liked being 'his' and that protecting her so was innate he didn't even realise he scanned the area constantly for anyone trying to slip something into her drink or take advantage. She suspected he deliberately stayed sober just so he could take care of her, she couldn't count the number of times he had carried her to the car when she had twisted her ankle in heels or had too many cocktails. God she loved him.

She called him as soon as she entered her dark bedroom.

"Hey." He sounded cautious, cautious was better than closed off.

"So care to tell me what was going through your head tonight? I genuinely want to know. I shouldn't have mentioned Matt but tonight was awful and I only did it for you."

Tyler sighed.

"I know I'm sorry, I didn't think. I just wanted her to get that I was serious about you, that you weren't going anywhere and I thought if I invited you to dinner and made holiday plans she get that I wasn't going to back down. It's been four months and she's still in denial. I don't know what else to do, she keeps trying to set me up with family friends' daughters like she's ignored whatever I've said. It was either this or move out, but then she'd be on her own."

Caroline smiled. "Couldn't you have told me that beforehand? Being blindsided sucks."

"I knew you wouldn't agree."

"So that's why you asked me while making me come?"

"Pretty much. I really thought I was doing the right thing, I just didn't want to freak you out before you even got to dinner."

"Your logic is pretty shit Lockwood. You're lucky you have amazing hands."

He chuckled warmly and she suddenly wished she hadn't left so quickly.

"Are we good?"

"We're good."

"You're pretty hot when you're angry, you know that?"

"Just pretty hot?"

"As in I want my hands, tongue and cock inside you tonight." He practically growled down the line.

Caroline laughed. She had no idea how he could say something so crude and her thrill with warmth as if he'd declared he'd just bought her a commitment ring.

"Well you can't always get what you want."

Cutting off her nose to spite her face wasn't pleasant but she didn't really feel like going back to his house so soon and her mom was home.

"Fine but as soon as your mom leaves for work I'm coming over before school."

She knew what that meant. The image of his hands with the loofa roaming down towards her centre was enough to have her throbbing in anticipation. Water trickling down his biceps and his erection pressing into her as he washed her hair was definitely her happy place. It tended to be their morning routine during the week because it was sexy _and_ efficient. Double calculus or a chemistry test could not phase a girl who had orgasmed twice before breakfast.

"Okay I'll get up early and make us pancakes after."

"How about we have the pancakes first, I find new places to pour that syrup and then clean you up after."

"That sounds…gross."

The innocent maple syrup of her youth was going to be corrupted..and sticky.

"I think I can change your mind."

He was a cocky pain in the ass but boy did he have an imagination.

"What about your mom?"

"What?"

"What about changing your mom's mind?"

"Well you totally killed the mood."

"I'm not having phone sex while I'm in my Kermit pyjamas Tyler!"

He laughed.

"Those are cute as hell."

"So, your mom?

"I have no idea. I'm open to suggestions."

"How about we go back into our little bubble, pretend no one hates us as a couple and ignore the cold shoulders of certain individuals. It's just you and me and the syrup."

"Sounds like a plan. So you're sure I can't come around? I can ignore that your mom fondles her gun whenever I enter your house if I get to see you in the Kermit PJs. Plan?"

"Okay but for the sake of consistency don't use the front door."

So pretending wasn't so compatible with practicality but she was going to get laid so it wasn't exactly getting her down. Life was crazy enough, she didn't want it to be empty in the bed next to her as well. He liked her Kermit pyjamas and that she muttered marmalade in her sleep and his hands never left her, even when he was dead to the world. The most basic of actions like going to bed were sprinkled with tiny details infused with meaning. It was the small reminders that made the big things worth fighting for.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: New chapter is up! Hope you enjoy it :) Please R&R!

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><p>"What do you think of this one?"<p>

Caroline twirled in the deep blue strapless dress and tried not to look too pleased with herself. The dress fit her like a glove and she knew she looked like a knockout. But it was the fifth dress she had gushed over so she didn't want to get too excited. She memorised the price and style so she could mentally compare them all at the end of the day.

"It looks good."

Bonnie flashed her an appeasing smile but she was glancing down at her phone every two seconds, Caroline was surprised she wasn't making herself dizzy. Elena merely gave her a half hearted thumbs up as she stroked some of the dresses absentmindedly. Clothes shopping used to be fun but since her friends had returned from their failed crusade a few months ago there had been unmitigated gloom. Caroline had hoped browsing for dresses for the winter formal would be a welcome reprieve from the helpless melancholy that pervaded every facet of Elena's life. Nobody had seen Stefan in almost five months and to say she was going through the motions was an understatement.

"Elena, try on that red one to your right! It's gorgeous and would suit you. My boobs are too big for it, it would make me feel fat but you could totally carry it off!"

"What for?" Elena sighed to herself.

Caroline felt her heart sink, sometimes she looked at her friend, remembered the countless funerals she'd attended to support her and wanted to cry. She attempted to provide superficial distraction as often as possible to try and bring her back into 'normal' life but it only seemed to highlight how incompatible she was for it. Caroline missed Stefan but she knew he would want her to try and make sure Elena didn't simply give up on everything, it was an exhausting exercise but she was determined.

"Because you'd look hot. What other incentive do you need? C'mon."

She plucked the dress off the rack and pushed Elena into the changing room with it. She eyed Bonnie after a few minutes of her staring at her phone.

"What's up with you? You're supposed to support my 'cheer Elena' campaign but you're almost as depressing as she is!"

"I heard that Care." Elena moaned quietly.

"Well you are! You exist in this vacuum of suckiness that is so fucking miserable and you need to take a break from it once in a while."

Elena ripped back the curtain and the dress unsurprisingly looked stunning on her.

"You think I _like_ being like this? You think I'd _choose _this?"

Elena looked outraged and hurt but at least she still had some spark left, it was relieving.

"No of course not but life goes on. You have to fake it until you make it and that means actually going to school and mustering a fraction of enthusiasm for trivial crap like dress shopping even if you don't feel it right now."

She could tell Elena liked the dress by the way she stood more upright, held her shoulders back for once. It was either that or self-righteous indignation.

"What makes _you_ the expert Caroline? Have you lost everything? Watched people you love die? I came on this stupid outing when most of the time I marvel how I haven't just shut down completely. I feel like I must have lost most of my soul to carry on after everything. It's a terrifying thought I can't shake so _excuse me _if I'm not in the right frame of mind to compliment your outfit."

She collapsed back against the side of the changing room to catch her breath. Bonnie and Caroline were as shocked as she was; Elena had barely raised her voice in months let alone actually expressed any sort of honest emotion. Caroline knelt next to her as Bonnie also dropped to her knees to wrap an arm around her.

"Elena you haven't lost your soul! Maybe it's just survivor's guilt you know? People have horrific things happen to them, good people, they carry on because they have to, not because they are soulless. Besides, would Jenna or John or Stefan want you to be a wreck? Jeremy needs you, _we _need you."

Bonnie nodded. "Caroline's right. Maybe just exist for others, try and get on for us? Then one day you'll feel like you deserve to for yourself too. One day you'll want to."

Elena shrugged her shoulders. "How do I do that? Tell me how and I'll do it."

The depth of hopeless pain and searching in Elena's eyes hit Caroline hard and it felt like every cell in her body was recoiling in horror. Coldness weighted down her stomach and she wished for the millionth time being a vampire didn't make her a basket case of emotions. She quickly swallowed down the emptiness and took her own advice and faked it.

"For a start you can stand up and twirl in that dress. I knew it'd look great. Then we're going to buy it and go and get a milkshake and we can grill Bonnie about what her boy issues are."

Bonnie's eyes widened. "I don't-"

"-Bonnie no girl checks her phone that obsessively unless they are having boy issues."

Caroline wasn't glad she wasn't such an expert on that subject.

Bonnie pursed her lips but didn't deny it. "Jeremy is her brother! Besides she doesn't need to hear about –"

Elena smiled. "-It would actually be nice to hear about something other than how great Tyler is in bed."

Caroline blushed. "I don't constantly-"

"-Caroline every time we have a coffee date I get new information, I've stopped being able to look Tyler in the eye." Bonnie pinched Caroline's thigh playfully.

"I thought Elena could live vicariously through me until Stefan returns. That way whenever she thinks a gloomy thought about _her_ boyfriend, her subconscious will implant one of _my _boyfriend naked and hard and-"

"Enough!" Elena stood up looking both amused and nauseas.

Caroline shrugged. "Seemed like good therapy to me."

Bonnie shook her head. "Caroline you have become a sexual deviant."

"Amen sister friend!" She high fived Bonnie proudly.

"Okay okay, get out of the changing room so I can change back and I'll get a milkshake _only _on the condition I don't have to hear anymore about certain anatomical regions of guys I've known since I was six. It's creepy."

"Deal!"

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><p>Tyler happened to walk by and spot his girlfriend sitting out on a café patio with her best friends in the early evening and walked over. Elena immediately blushed and looked down while Bonnie seemed fascinated with the dregs of her cappuccino. He was beginning to think they both hated him, maybe it was their jealously of him for taking up Caroline's time but he got the distinct impression his ears should be burning.<p>

"Hey guys."

"Hey sweetie. Are you joining us?"

He shook his head hastily.

"Er no I just wanted to say hi."

He leant down and kissed Caroline as she gave his ass a subtle squeeze. She was a very handsy girlfriend and he was in no way complaining. Nevertheless, he quickly retreated so not to antagonise her friends anymore. He gave them an awkward wave before weaving backwards through the tables self consciously. He was even more disconcerted to hear all three of them burst out laughing when he had rounded the corner.

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><p>He was woken up in the early hours night by Caroline angling herself awkwardly through his open bedroom window.<p>

"Hey sweetie!" She slumped onto the floor and giggled to herself.

"I thought you were having a sleepover with the girls?" He sat up bleary eyed.

It had been hard enough falling asleep without her next to him so he assumed he'd only had an hour's sleep at most.

"I am. Or _was_. But I missed you and they fell asleep, we may have had some peach schnapps with our rocky road ice cream."

"Get in here drunkard." She was such an endearing drunk now she no longer went on miserable rants about Matt and how being single sucked.

He pulled the covers back and moved over so she could have the warm side.

Once she had stripped off her dress and bra she cuddled in next to him and kissed the nape of his neck.

"Caroline?"

"Hmm?"

"Am I the butt of some joke I should know about?"

"You have a great butt." She thrusted her groin against it and stroked his cock through his boxers.

"You're just trying to shut me up so you don't have to answer the question. You know I can get it out of you."

He turned over so he was facing her and slipped his hand between her legs as he kissed into the side of her neck.

"Hmm this is interesting. You want to have sex to get me to talk and I want to have sex to shut you up. I don't even mind losing this kind of game."

"Good, because I intend to win."

He flipped her on to her back and began to slide down her body under the covers. In the end they were both victorious, Tyler's mouth was too busy to talk and Caroline ended up crying out anything he wanted to hear into the pillow.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: It's been awhile I know but this chapter is extra extra long to make up for it. There will only be 2 chapters after this before it's finished. Let me know what you think :)

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><p>Caroline sat in Bonnie's living room and hugged her tightly as she cried into her coat. She had barely gotten through the front door before Bonnie's watery smile disintegrated and cried silently into her sleeve. Caroline was so used to Bonnie being strong and fearless (almost unlimited magical ability could do that to a girl) that she forgot how being in love was the great equaliser. Even the staunchest person could be transformed into a mumbling wreck. Now it was Bonnie's turn.<p>

"So what happened exactly? What did he say?"

"He said he was seeing dead people and that I deserved better than some hallucinating freak. He's been distant for weeks but I couldn't figure out why."

"Yeah him seeing ghosts makes it _so_ much clearer."

She regretted the sarcasm as she felt Bonnie tense next to her but she was angry with Jeremy on her friend's behalf. He was the nerdy kid brother, he did _not_ dump someone as awesome as Bonnie. He was obviously insane.

"He thought he was doing the right thing."

"I guess. So what's the deal with his sixth sense?"

Bonnie paused before sighing

"He's been seeing Vicki and Anna."

Caroline didn't know what to say. The whole situation was awkward and creepy. The knowledge ghosts existed (if that's really what they were) was something she could ponder fearfully as she hid under her bedcovers later on, but right now she was on damage control.

"Is this some magic thing? Haunting thing?"

"I think it's a side effect of bringing him back to life. I'll have to do some research into it and maybe if I can cure him things will sort themselves out."

"So do they say things to him? I mean they don't tell him to slit peoples' throats or anything?"

Bonnie scowled. "He's not crazy or evil Caroline!"

"Hey it's a fair question. This is Mystic Falls, where the senior class are more likely to die than graduate, if they haven't been killed already."

Now that she thought of it, she was never sleeping at Tyler's house again. Two of their friends had been murdered on the premises just this year, god knows how many others had been killed on that estate over the centuries. If anywhere was going to be haunted, the Lockwood mansion would be it.

"Apparently they help him out. Like tell him to be nicer to his sister, mend relationships and go on about how death isn't really that terrible. They told him to let me go for my own good or so he believes."

Caroline had a hard time seeing Vicki as the voice of wisdom and reconciliation even if she was a ghost but she didn't want to call bullshit on the recently deceased.

"Well then, we'll hit the books and see if we can politely exorcise them so Jeremy can get back to hanging with the living."

Bonnie straightened, having a purpose other than wallowing was the best remedy for a broken heart. Caroline never thought she'd see the day when she and Tyler had the most stable relationship in town but wonders really never ceased in their fucked up community.

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><p>"Are you ready?"<p>

"I've been ready for the last ten minutes Caroline."

Tyler inhaled a deep breath as he paced at the bottom of the staircase. Becoming a werewolf had not made him any more patient.

"No I mean for my descending entrance!"

"Huh?"

He could hear her sigh as she appeared at the top of the staircase in her fitted blue dress. Her hair was curled and half up and she was wearing the necklace he had got her. Of all the things that could have touched him it was the fact she was wearing the silver bat necklace he had jokingly bought her, it didn't match her outfit. For Caroline that was a real sacrifice for love and he knew it. Although he thought getting suited up and buying a corsage for a lame high school dance was a pretty good accommodation on his part too.

"You look gorgeous."

She beamed as he gulped, she knew he was trying to keep his hormones under control as her long legs travelled down the stairs towards him. Usually getting dressed up was woefully inefficient because Tyler would advance on her and she'd have to re-dress and re-apply her smudged lipstick. Tonight was a serious matter though, she had practically organised the whole winter formal single-handedly (Tyler had also been roped in on occasion) so she had to get there early to supervise.

"See that just there? Where I float down gracefully and you ogle appreciatively? That was a descending entrance beloved of chick flicks and a romance staple since stairs were invented."

Tyler rolled his eyes.

"I get it, you're a total sap and I'm whipped for playing along."

Caroline laughed.

"You always manage to ruin my fairytale moments."

He kissed her cheek before grabbing her waist and dipping her down until her curls almost swept the floor and she shrieked in surprise.

"This is what girls lose their panties over right? The gentleman seducer."

He kissed her carefully so her lipstick didn't smear and brought her back up again and chuckled at her surprised grin.

"I can be the dreamboat, it would mean abandoning my pride and concealing a cringe or two but for one night Caroline Forbes, I'll be your Romeo. I'll twirl you around the dance floor and hold your purse, whisper sweet nothings into your ear and look deep into your eyes."

"Really?"

Tyler shook his head in amusement. "Nope."

Caroline whacked him over the back of the head with her clutch but she wasn't upset, she knew he'd do exactly what he'd just ridiculed. He couldn't help himself where she was concerned.

"Come on asshole, we're going to be late."

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><p>"I can't believe you got Jeremy to go with you. This is a good sign right?"<p>

The formal was off to a great start, everyone was on the dance floor mingling and Caroline and Bonnie were watching over the punch bowl for any opportunists. Bonnie shrugged and searched around uncomfortably in case Jeremy might overhear. Elena was coming to the dance later on but Damon was already there 'chaperoning'. She guessed it was all orchestrated just so he could have a slow dance with his unrequited love rather than to monitor any bad behaviour. She almost felt sorry for him in how pathetic it all was.

"He had agreed to be my date before we broke up and he didn't want to leave me in the lurch. Bad news is I still can't find a way to get rid of his 'problem' and I have to share him with two other women. I only really pushed him to come so I could keep him close by."

"What do you mean?"

Bonnie gave Damon a meaningful look before eyeing Caroline carefully as if deciding something.

"Klaus is nearby."

"_What_?"

Caroline spilt her drink into the front of her dress as she had stepped backwards quickly into the drinks table and the drink in her hand splashed over. It barely even registered, the dread that had flooded her system reduced her to opening and closing her mouth in horror. Tyler was catching up with Matt and his other football buddies by the speakers when he had sensed her unease.

"You okay?" He whispered it but he knew she could hear him as she automatically searched for him in the room. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck begin to prickle at the look of abject terror on his girlfriend's face. He wanted to storm over and ask what the hell was going on but he didn't want to cause a scene if he didn't have to.

She nodded quickly but it was obvious she was lying. She gave him a pleading look not to push the issue before turning back to Bonnie. He was definitely not a wait-and-see kinda guy but he quashed the adrenaline and focussed back on what Matt was saying to the group.

"What do you mean nearby Bonnie? Why the hell wouldn't you tell me this before?"

There were about a million questions racing around in her head. She would have thought it was a sick joke if Bonnie's sense of humour hadn't died when her relationship had.

"He's in Mystic Falls. Elena is on her way with Alaric. I only found out he was in town a few hours ago, I felt his presence. I didn't want to cause a panic, it's what he wants."

Caroline was not going to get hysterical. She was going to stay calm and composed. By not cause a panic Bonnie had meant she didn't trust Caroline not to freak the fuck out. She would prove her wrong even if it meant resisting the immediate urge to slap her friend. Hard.

"Why the fuck would you know what he wants Bonnie? How dare you not give anybody a heads up! All we do know is that he has Stefan and is wreaking havoc wherever he goes. Why the fuck wouldn't you let me warn Tyler and get him out of town? Who's to say he won't try to turn him? I feel sick."

Her hands were shaking and she couldn't focus on one thought. All her worst fears just began circling in her mind. Bonnie looked suitably guilty as she lay a hand on her arm.

"Caroline please just listen. Elena will be here soon with Alaric. I've cast a shrouding spell on her, she won't appear to anyone trying to find her and then when we are all together we'll talk properly. He needs to think we aren't expecting him, it will bring him close and then I'll take him out. Rushing Tyler out of town will raise his suspicions at best or divert his attention to a potential victim at worst. He'll attempt to kill me first since I'm the only real threat and if you start running around trying to warn people he'll know I know and that can only hurt our chances."

Caroline laughed shrilly.

"How do you plan to kill someone who is invincible Bonnie? Besides doesn't he have witches of his own? Surely they'd be able to tell he doesn't have the element of surprise."

Caroline's heart was practically hammering out of her ribcage. She could see Tyler cracking his knuckles out of the corner of her eye in an effort to restrain himself from marching over or eavesdropping. She sincerely hoped it was the latter, the last thing she needed was him overhearing the tail end of the worst conversation of her life.

"I felt he only has one witch that you and Damon can take care of easily. Since he's become a hybrid no witch of any worth will go near him. He's an abomination and once the wiccan community found out he had got his previous witches slaughtered he was on his own. Anyway, I don't need to kill him. I only have to disable him long enough to trap him. I'm going to cast a transfer spell once I get him unconscious. It will remove his essence from his body so that I can give it to the spirits of his victims. According to the grimoire they'll take him to the afterlife and then we can get rid of his body."

"How did you-"

"-I came across it when I was looking at spells to try and help Jeremy, there is heaps to do with the otherworld that I wonder why I didn't think of it before. He is only powerful when his mind and body are together."

"It sounds dangerous Bonnie, how do you get him unconscious?"

"I can do it with magic if no one interferes. Hopefully Stefan will change sides once he sees Elena or you and Damon will have to keep him busy too. I know it's complicated and can fail at any point but we knew this day would come."

Jenna had paid the ultimate price last time, Caroline didn't see tonight ending any other way than bloody also. This whole thing was just so out of left field, one minute she was stressing over where the streamers should hang and Tyler's hair sticking up properly and now the moment she had almost forgotten to fear had crashed into her life.

"Do you have enough power? The whole point of not killing Klaus is because it would kill you too, what about doing all that crap you just said?"

"I should be fine. I'm ready to do it."

Caroline felt dizzy at the amount of information she was trying to process. Would Klaus come in to the gym? Would he kill innocent people? Would they be revealed to everyone in fighting him? Would her mom arrive and get herself killed? Why was he back now?

"Okay if you say so. I need to talk to Tyler."

She walked across the dance floor to her boyfriend but she might as well have been wading through mud, her whole body felt heavy and there was a sense foreboding that was suffocating her. He looked concerned as he watched her approach.

"What's going on?"

She took his hand silently and dragged him out into the corridor where she could catch her breath in the cool open space. To hell with what Bonnie said, she wasn't going to let Tyler unknowingly play bait.

"Tyler you have to go. Get your mom and leave town now."

"What are you talking about?"

Tyler was glancing around suspiciously and steered her further away from the main doors.

"It will take too long to explain, please just do it."

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me why the hell you're crying and telling me to skip town." He stroked the teara away from her cheeks in what would have been reassurance if she didn't feel so disconnected from everything. She hadn't even noticed she'd been crying.

"Klaus is in town. I need you to get my mom too and get them out of the way."

Tyler stood rigid and silent for a long moment before he swivelled around to punch in a locker. The noise of it echoing down the empty hallway snapped her back into the present.

"Who do you think you're talking to? You think I'm going play babysitter and run to safety? Forget it."

"Stop shouting!" He looked like he wanted to hit her too he was so furious.

"Fine, but it makes me fucking mad when you think you can just click your fingers and I'll jump. Especially when it means leaving you to do fuck knows what. It's not going to happen so don't ask me again okay?"

She nodded and hugged him tightly. He was huffing against her trying to reign in his temper.

"I'm sorry, I'm just scared for you."

He rested his head against hers and twirled a curl around his finger in familar comfort.

"Don't be. I've dealt with having all my bones broken and twisted on a monthly basis, I can take a bit of pain."

He smiled grimly at her. But she wasn't worried about him being in pain, she was worried he'd get his neck snapped before he even had time to feel anything.

* * *

><p>Jeremy, Bonnie, Caroline, Tyler and Damon sat around an empty table at the front of the gym near the entrance. Everyone ignored their sudden lack of enthusiasm as the students converged into a heaving mass on the dance floor. That was except for a few girls on the social committee who threw Caroline a few surprised looks at her resigned expression. These included Kimeberely and Lena, the two girls who had bitched behind her back at Brian's party. She couldn't even muster up the energy to eavesdrop on what they were assuming she was up to now.<p>

"Why do I feel like I'm stuck at the loser table?" Damon poured whiskey from a hipflask into one of the empty plastic cups under the table.

Jeremy shrugged. "You're the one that's far too old to even be chaperoning something like this. It makes you look like the manchild who peaked in high school and never wants to leave. Half the parents chaperoning here think you're a sex offender."

Damon rolled his eyes. "_Please_, there is no underage girl at this school hot enough to tempt me anyway, even the senior class here are all braces and nose jobs."

Caroline looked at Mindy who was dancing with Ben Maynard, head of the school yearbook committee and maybe the sweetest male to ever exist. Her nose looked absolutely fine after being straightened and more importantly she looked genuinely happy. Caroline had never told even Tyler about what she had done to her, now a sliver of satisfaction accompanied the twinge of guilt when she saw Mindy. Better a few broken bones than endless broken hearts.

"Hey speak for yourself jackass, my girlfriend is hot as hell." Tyler whacked his leg under the table.

Damon sighed. "So mature Lockwood."

Caroline breathed a sigh of relief that Damon didn't bring up their 'past' together to one up her boyfriend. Maybe Damon really did care about her.

"Just responding in kind."

Jeremy laughed.

"What's so funny?" Both Damon and Tyler questioned in irritation.

"Vikki says she's so glad she doesn't have to deal with stunted male bullshit anymore."

Tyler stared at his hands. "That is so fucking creepy."

Ever since Tyler had found out about Jeremy seeing Vicki's 'ghost' he had avoided him like the plague. He simply didn't want to believe it was really her nor did he want to talk to her via his former rival for her affections. The whole concept was beyond fucked up and Caroline agreed.

"Do Vicki or Anna say anything about tonight, any tips from the Great Beyond while we wait for Elena and our potential demise?" Caroline was only half joking. She would run around the gym stark naked if they told her it would give them even a shadow of a chance.

Jeremy looked reluctant. "She says I'll be alright, that this is where I'm supposed to be."

Tyler graoned. "Yeah well good for you, what about the rest of us? We better not all get screwed just because you have some supernatural mojo crap on your side."

"Vicki says you haven't changed."

Tyler glanced away to focus on the dancing couples and made no reply. Caroline clasped his hand under the table, Vicki's ghost or whatever she was knew nothing.

Finally Elena entered wearing the red dress Caroline had picked out and Alaric followed in behind her. She looked tired but far from scared.

"Any news guys?"

Bonnie pulled a seat across from another empty table so Elena could sit next to her. "Klaus is coming here, I can feel his power increasing which means he's getting closer. I've put a protection spell around the school, he wont be able to get in until we want him to."

"Which will be never?" Caroline queried hopefully.

Bonnie smiled indulgently. "If only. We'll go with Alaric's plan. First I'll seal off the gym and we can use the rest of the school to fight in, we know these hallways, we'll spread out and force him to separate out his forces. Caroline and Tyler can take the north entrance, I'll stay with Elena by the gym near the front entrance and Damon, Jeremy and Alaric can guard the side doors on the west side."

She picked up her backpack which was under the table.

"I have walkie talkies for each group so we can stay in contact, warn each other. I'll make Klaus come to me so the rest of you will need weapons for witches or vampires."

She didn't specifically mention Stefan but there was a collective unease about having to potentially kill their friend.

"I come in with the fire power. I have stakes, crossbows and silencers I've just put in a locker outside the gym. Use the gun first on anyone that crosses your path, if it's a witch they'll be finished off without having a chance to use their powers and if it's a vampire it will at least stall them so you know what you're dealing with and can work as a pair to take them out."

Alaric nodded encouragingly to them all but his last instructions suddenly made everything real. Kill or be killed. They had not been prepared and this was a last ditch effort at a defence.

Damon stood up. "Okay enough with the chit chat, lets get this over with."

So they all wandered out slowly into the cold corridor while Bonnie cast a sealing spell which would prevent any entry into the gym whether it was person or sound until they needed it to. Nothing, not even phone calls could get in without Bonnie's say so. Alaric began dishing out the weapons. Tyler and Jeremy and Elena all took silencer guns Alaric had acquired over the months, he took the safety lock off each as he handed them carefully out.

"Just point and shoot okay? You don't have unlimited ammo so don't get trigger happy. Be quick but accurate."

"Yeah sure, no problem." Tyler replied sarcastically as he eyed his weapon with suspicion.

He wondered why the hell they hadn't been practicing before now so that when given a gun he didn't automatically remember the water pistol range at the fair. They had all been living with their heads in the sand and now they were realising just how much. He was fucking scared, both he and Caroline had been knocked out by a witch before, the blinding pain of it left him barely able to see let alone aim a gun.

Caroline and Damon were both given stakes and a crossbow and Alaric equipped himself with one of each. Bonnie refused any weapon at all which had Jeremy complaining before one of his ghosts had obviously said something to him and he was off in his own little world. Alaric gave a homemade molotov cocktail to Damon and kept one for himself but he didn't trust any of the younger members to use one.

Suddenly there was a tense silence as they all stood facing each other. The whole situation felt bizarre, she'd be fighting for her life down by her chemistry classroom and a stationary closet her and Tyler had attempted to have sex in before getting caught. She tried not to giggle, especially when she looked across at her boyfriend in his dishevelled tux holding a gun gingerly like some absurd James Bond. She couldn't help herself, she burst into laughter that made Jeremy jump.

"I'm sorry, I can't help it." She could barely breath or speak, it felt so good to release some energy, even if she was doubled over cackling like a maniac.

It was an awkward moment when everyone just stared at her like she was crazy (including Jeremy), Tyler just took her hand and began to lead her to their 'post'.

"No goodbyes, no one is dying tonight. I'll see you all later okay?" Bonnie smiled encouragingly at everyone although her pep talk fell flat. The whole situation was like one of those nightmares where you come to school with no clothes on but you notice too late.

Caroline nodded but as she went to turn the corner she called back, "no goodbyes but I love you all, even Damon on occasion."

Elena and Bonnie responded with a quiet 'I love you too' and there was even an affectionate 'you wish barbie' from Damon. Alaric's look was the one that scared her, it was regret.

* * *

><p>Tyler and Caroline sat opposite each other in the dim corridor while they waited for word on the walkie talkie.<p>

"How about we try for another quickie in the closet? That way I can die happy."

Caroline shook her head. "Don't even joke."

She fidgeted on the floor as the corseted part of her dress poked into her hips.

"Stay here okay? I need to get something quickly."

He went to protest but she had sped down the hallway before he could utter a syllable and she was back again within minutes in her gym clothes. It wasn't exactly fresh after being left in her locker part of the weekend but it was far more comfortable and easier to fight in than her previous outfit. She really _really_ didn't want to die in her sweaty shorts and T-shirt. Tyler had taken the hint and removed his jacket, undone some of the top buttons of his shirt and rolled up his sleeves. The gun was sat away from him on the floor like they were ignoring each other.

"Caroline, what did you want to be when you grew up? Before all the supernatural crap I mean."

She tried to think back, it felt like eons ago.

"I don't know, it changed week by week. Although clothing designer usually came top of the list, at least for a few years then I planned to marry a great guy who happened to be wealthy and be the best stay-at-home mom ever. I'd bake, be on the PTA and design clothes for charity." She smiled wistfully.

Tyler nodded. "I used to hate how driven you were when we were younger. I guess I was jealous, I didn't know what to do with my life. I just wanted to get out of mystic falls."

"Yeah I can't imagine werewolf was one of your future life choices. So what do you want to be now?"

Tyler looked down and pressed his lips together. "It's simple, I just want to be with you. Corny as hell but absolutely true."

He shrugged awkwardly and stared back at his gun as if worried it would go off on its own. She slid across the floor to kiss him.

"Well you can see how long you put up with me after we get out of this."

He grinned. "Now don't you wish you'd let me fuck you before we came to the dance?"

She rolled her eyes but couldn't disagree. She instead settled for the comfort of his arms as she curled up in his lap and held the gun for the both of them.

* * *

><p>AN: Not sure how this will all plan out but I felt if I was going to end the story it shouldn't just be for Caroline and Tyler. Whether they both live or end up happy is yet to come.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: It's been beyond forever I know! I've finally finished by dissertation so I can spend time writing for fun again. I'm finishing this story for the sake of completenes. It's bittersweet to be writing about Tyler when he's still a werewolf so I'm sorry if it's sucky. Reviews are sweetness :)

* * *

><p>It had been an hour of waiting in silence while Tyler rubbed circles soothingly above her thumb. After the adrenaline surge of earlier had worn off Caroline had become almost drowsy with emotional exhaustion. It was when she began to wonder if Klaus was actuslly coming at all that the double doors to the courtyard burst open. Caroline leapt up at the same time Tyler grabbed the gun from her and aimed from where he was crouching. He shot without hesitating and the bullet lodged itself into Stefan's thigh.<p>

Stefan.

Caroline felt too disorientated to be initially scared as she faced her former mentor who stared at her with cold bemusement. The tense showdown was broken by yelling over the walkie talkie that Klaus was in the building and then there was only static.

"Well Caroline, long time no see huh?"

She didn't have time to utter a reply before he had picked up Tyler and shoved him with such violence that he was thrown through a closed classroom door to crash into the desks. Caroline shakily drew her crossbow and fired (there was a first time for everything) but Stefan caught the arrow easily and laughed. Everything about him was hollow: his eyes, his voice. It was like his soul had left a vaccum when it disappeared.

"A for effort sweetheart." He gave her a smarmy smile that made her stomach coil before he sped over and pinned her against the lockers.

"Please don't-" She tried to wriggle out from under his body slam but it was like trying to move a wall.

"Don't what? You think I'm going to kill you? Have my wicked way with you?" He questioned mockingly.

A whimper was emitted as he twisted an arm by her side. She closed her eyes, she didn't want to look at him any longer. He seemed to ponder for a moment what option he was going to choose before he reached around and sunk the arrow into her lower spine. An indescribable sound was ripped from her throat as her legs automatically gave out and he let her slump to the floor unconscious. She came around minutes later and wished she hadn't, her legs were dead weight and she was dizzy with pain. She struggled to hone her senses and stay conscious as she could make out a dark figure being dragged towards her by another.

Tyler.

"Caroline it's your lucky day. I'm going to kill your boyfriend in front of you but you'll get to live awhile longer. Sound good?" He slapped her lightly on the cheek as she struggled to keep her head up before he stood again with a gun pointed over Tyler who was struggling to sit up himself.

"Since Lockwood is so fond of guns I'll give him a taste of his own medicine. Kneecaps first I think."

Caroline tried to push herself off the lockers with her arms but the searing heat of destroyed nerves was unbearable and she physically shrunk back at the shots and accompanying cries as Stefan carried out his plan.

"Stefan stop! Bonnie is going to take out Klaus, just wait and your compulsion will be gone!"

Stefan wandered closer to her as she watched Tyler writhing in agony behind him. He looked down on her like she was nothing. It hurt almost as much as her arrow wound.

"The arrogance of your little gang is bizarre. You think you can win this? It would be funny if it wasn't so pathetic."

Tyler was still crying out in pain but while doing so he had manoeuvred himself around subtly. She realised his cries of pain were an exaggerated bluff. She knew what his real suffering sounded like on a monthly basis but Stefan didn't. As far as Stefan was concerned, Tyler was a useless victim, disabled by his own anguish. This complacency was their only chance and Tyler seemed to grasp that because she saw him grit his teeth and silently but forcefully swipe his bloody legs against Stefan and knocked his own out from under him as they swung under. It almost happened in slow motion as Stefan fell to one side and his arm made contact with the ground. Tyler had levelled their attacker close enough to her as her own instincts took over and she ripped the arrow out of her back and launched it hard into Stefan's had temporarily incapacitated him with a yelp as he gripped the arrow in surprise and struggled to pull it out from around the back of his ribs. She was glad Stefan was finally hurting as well because her own injuries were making it hard to breath and blackness loomed at the edge of her vision. In the meantime, Tyler had managed to crawl back over to where he had dropped the stake, threw it over to her and without thinking or looking she drove it swiftly through Stefan's heart. She didn't watch the life drain out of him, she only heard a sigh. It almost sounded relieved.

Tyler and Caroline just stared at each other for a long moment across the corpse before she lay back down next to her former friend and waited to heal. She felt compelled to take his hand as they both stared up at the ceiling. 'I'm sorry it ever came to this' she tried to squeeze into his cold fingers.

* * *

><p>Half an hour of thinking. Thinking of everything but the circumstances Caroline was currently in (ballet, fireworks and peasant dresses had floated through her mind) before she felt healed enough to sit up properly.<p>

"Tyler, you okay?"

"My legs have gone numb since I can't get the bullets out and the pool of my own blood is making me feel kind of cold but otherwise I'm all good." He chuckled half-heartedly before it died in his throat.

"Mine are too! Since this is my second experience with a severed spine this year it's a bit of a walk in the park."

Tyler couldn't muster even a fake laugh for her terrible humour but he mumbled 'good one' before motioning for her to come to him. She didn't like Stefan's body being a barrier between them either, he still smelled of his familiar aftershave, it was making her feel ill.

"Why do I have to come to you? Paralysis totally trumps bullet wounds." She was struggling to keep herself distracted as she dragged herself around Stefan to her boyfriend. She had killed someone she cared about, the horrible reality of the situation was still hovering threateningly in her subconscious but shock and survival instincts were keeping her going. She narrowed her focus on the colour of the dress she got in April or whether _Swan Lake_ was more beautiful than _The Nutcracker_, on bickering with Tyler.

She collapsed onto Tyler's chest as she nuzzled in next to him. It didn't even occur to her that she had just sunk down into Tyler's blood too and her white gym top was now half soaked. They were both too tired to find a clean spot to lie in. The blood from both of them was all over the place anyway.

* * *

><p>It was Alaric who found them. He uttered a curse word that woke them both up. To Caroline's relief she was fully functioning when she came around the second time. She got up shakily as Tyler managed to slump against the locker.<p>

"Alaric! I'm glad you're okay-"

His expression was so grave that the words caught and were extinguished. She simply stood in silence, terrified to enquire after the bad news. She couldn't lose anyone else. Tyler took over for her as he asked Alaric what had happened.

"Klaus and Bonnie were fighting it out. Damon had killed the witch so Bonnie was channelling her energy at Klaus. He had some sort of magical shield even after the witch had died. Then Jeremy-"

Alaric ran a hand across his head in disbelief as he too sat down against the lockers.

"-Jeremy came out of nowhere and attacked him, his mystical energy from the ghosts somehow counteracted Klaus' shield and that energy had him last longer than he should have. Still, Klaus ripped out his heart after a struggle."

_The Nutcracker_ was definitely a better ballet. It was what reminded her of christmas. So did the _Coca Cola_ adverts and the smell of mince pies.

Tyler had managed to lean up and tug against Caroline's arm and she absentmindedly sunk down into his arms next to Alaric. She really didn't want to hear anymore.

"That bastard better be dead then." Tyler got out through gritted teeth.

Alaric sighed. "I don't know what went wrong with the transfer spell. I think Bonnie's spirit had been crushed when she saw Jeremy get killed but whatever happened she killed Klaus with magic. I'm so sorry Caroline but it cost her her life."

Caroline took a second to understand his words before she dived forward and vomited as Tyler stroked her back. She felt dazed, why wasn't she crying? She cried about everything. She made Tyler watch _Atonement_ with her two days ago and was a blubbering mess by the credits.

"What about Elena and Damon?" Tyler asked resignedly. She wanted to scream at Tyler to stop asking so many questions but she couldn't find her voice. She thought of _The Little Mermaid_ and whether _she_ would have given up speech for a pair of legs.

"Elena is alive but she's a mess, Damon had to carry her out of the school, she was practically catatonic. Now Stefan's dead too. How the hell do I tell her that?" Alaric rested his head in his hands and whispered about everyone being too young, too god damn young.

Caroline had to get out of there. Out of the school, out of her bloody clothes, out of her own skin. She stood up and staggered forward before she had suddenly forgotten where she was or what was happening before she was out cold for a third time.

* * *

><p>Tyler thought in practical terms. Growing up in an emotionless household had made it a preferred choice. His girlfriend had just fainted into a pool of blood and vomit in the school hallway they had almost died in and he was too injured to try and catch her. Being practical created order out of chaos. For example, how the fuck was he supposed to get to the car? Who the hell was going to be cleaning up this mess? Were the students still trapped in the gym? How was he going to mend Caroline? Everything was fucked and it hurt.<p>

Despite his reasoning, his physically ached at the thought of Jeremy, the outcast he had understood. For Bonnie, a girl he had shared a sandbox with. Everything was too fresh. He half believed he'd wake up tomorrow next to a drugged out Vicki and go to football practice in a world before death and the supernatural. Before he fell in love. A part of him truly wanted to. He felt guilty for wondering whether he would give up Caroline for a world that hadn't killed his friends. Especially because the answer was no.

* * *

><p>AN: Probably one chapter to go then the epilogue


End file.
